CHAPTER 3

I do not own Doctor Who and I am making no profit off of this.

Thank you so much for all of your favorites, follows, and reviews! I really appreciate them.

AN IMPOSSIBLE REVELATION

"It's useless to try to run now, Lady Me, so don't even think about it. It's finally over at last. Now that it is though I suppose I can finally admit something to you at last. I almost admire you in a way. You've definitely lasted far longer than I ever thought that you would. You were always doomed to fail in the end though naturally. No human, no matter how intelligent or experienced that they are, could ever hope to truly be superior to a Time Lord," Commander Maxil said with a smirk so wide that Ashildr couldn't help but wonder how it didn't completely swallow his face.

It was a pity that it didn't really. It would definitely be a much needed improvement.

"You're certainly my superior when it comes to arrogance, Maxil," Ashildr said with a wicked smile.

The laughter that she briefly heard coming from Maxil's guards behind his back at that moment only made her smile widen even more. If only it reflected how she truly felt. She wasn't about to give Maxil the satisfaction of seeing the utter despair filling her heart at that moment however now that Clara was gone.

"I definitely won't miss that acid tongue of yours. You have no idea just how glad I am that from now on that's going to be someone else's problem. Take her away," Maxil said in a cold voice.

"You can put me away for as long as you want, Maxil, but eventually I'll outlast even the very walls of your prison themselves. One day I'll be standing right in the middle of Gallifrey's ruins long after all of you 'superior' Time Lords have turned to dust . . . for a second time," Ashildr said with a smirk even as she willingly held out her hands to the guards while waiting for them to place restraints on her.

She was already planning out a way to escape in her head even now and was sure that she would be free long before they actually reached Gallifrey. The only trick was getting back to the TARDIS before the Time Lords could take it away. If that happened, she would be trapped in this time and would be no help to Clara at all whatsoever.

Luckily for her, however, she wouldn't have to worry about that for long.

"Stop!" Maxil shouted as he suddenly looked behind her.

At first Ashildr had no idea what he was reacting to and then to her complete astonishment she suddenly heard the TARDIS start to dematerialize behind her. Most of the guards joined Maxil and shouted out in surprise while several others immediately looked at her as if she were behind it all. She had no more idea of what was happening than they did however since there was currently no one else onboard the ship.

So who or what was piloting it and where were they going with it?

As she saw the TARDIS rapidly fading away out of the corner of her eye, she began to wonder if she would ever know the answers to those questions or not. It turned out that she didn't have long to wait before she found out however.

Ashildr now smiled with joy as the TARDIS rapidly materialized around her right in front of the now openly fuming Maxil and quickly spirited her away from him. She still didn't have a clue what was going on but seeing the impotent rage on the Time Lord's face at that moment made the whole confusing experience more than worthwhile.

"I don't know who you are but I could definitely kiss you right now," Ashildr said without turning around to see who was at the console.

"Thanks but I'll have to pass on that I think. Kissing couldn't possibly be that good if you can't experience it in all twelve dimensions at once which I definitely can't in this form," A voice that Ashildr didn't recognize said from behind her.

"Who?" Ashildr asked in confusion as she now finally turned around at last to see a young woman in her twenties standing there with a warm smile on her face.

"Who do you think I am? Think about it, Ashildr. I'm sure it shouldn't be too hard for someone with your intelligence to figure out. You're usually the smart one of the group after all not that Clara isn't absolutely brilliant all on her own of course. I say she could easily give even the Doctor a run for his money these days," The young woman said happily as she continued to talk to her as if she were an old friend while expertly manipulating the controls.

"Are you . . . ? It can't be but it simply has to be doesn't it? I have no idea how or why but you have to be the TARDIS in human form," Ashildr said as she began to smile back at her in approval.

"See? I knew you'd get it," The TARDIS said as she wrapped her arms around Ashildr and hugged her tightly.

"How though?" Ashildr somehow managed to ask as she struggled to breathe while desperately hoping that this strange girl would let her go soon.

"Ooh, now I see why Clara likes that so much. I'll have to do it more often," The TARDIS said with a satisfied look on her face as she finally pulled away from her.

"You never did answer me. How can you have a body? I know for a fact that a TARDIS matrix like yours would quickly burn out a human body in no time but you seem perfectly fine," Ashildr asked suspiciously.

"I didn't answer because I don't actually have an answer for once. I think it must have something to do with that mysterious creature that tried to take me over though. Somehow in some way a freak accident occurred during its attack on me, and my consciousness wound up being split in half and placed inside of a physical form. Perhaps it was attempting to make a body for itself in order to escape its impending destruction and it failed miserably. I don't know for sure. That's the downside of suddenly being stuck inside one of these flesh and blood shells instead of my usual one is that I no longer know the past and the future like I used to anymore when I was whole. Other than that it's not so bad being suddenly three dimensional I suppose. Unfortunately that also means that I have absolutely no idea where Clara is at this moment. I'm going to do my best to find her though so don't look so worried, Ashildr. Okay?" The TARDIS said with a reassuring smile.

"This . . . is just beyond weird and yet oddly satisfying all at the same time. Even I've never had something like this happen to me before. I'd say that it was a very welcome experience if Clara weren't currently stuck who knows where," Ashildr said in a completely mystified tone as she continued to stare at this mysterious woman with skeptical eyes.

"Well, that makes two of us then. With both of us working together on it though, we'll soon have it all figured out in no time I'm sure. Right now I'd rather have my Clara back again. Things just aren't the same around here without her. I miss her just as much as you do, you know?" The TARDIS said with a mournful expression.

"Somehow I doubt that because I feel as if I'm about to completely fall apart right now," Ashildr suddenly admitted to the strange woman to her surprise.

"I know. We'll find her though. I know we will. Well, I don't know actually but . . . Hmm. What a curious sensation! Is this what you lot call hope? Yes, I think it must be. I've never experienced it before. Up until now I always knew exactly what was going to happen at every moment in the past, present, and future so I never had to hope for anything. It's very scary isn't it?" The TARDIS said in an obviously worried voice as she put a comforting arm around Ashildr.

"Yes. Yes, it is," Ashildr admitted as she rested her head on her new/old friend's shoulder and fought back a desperate urge to cry at that moment.

Clara meanwhile almost felt like crying herself back on Elta VII but for a very different reason. Wearing Leela's extra outfit seemed like a fun idea when she was just trying to prompt an embarrassed reaction out of the Doctor, but it wasn't so great in actual practice when she had to wear it in front of all of the other Time Lords on that world. Sure, it covered all of the proper areas but it revealed far more of her than she was usually comfortable in showing in public especially to total strangers.

Leela actually seemed more than a bit amused by her reaction as she said, "I did offer to give you an extra suit of battle armor. I would still suggest that you wear one even if you are as indestructible as you seem if only to keep you from having that horrified look on your face. I am not sure why you appear so embarrassed, Elizabeth. I've seen your Earth bathing suits and they are far more revealing."

"Yeah, I know but I'd still prefer not to have everyone here committing a mental picture of me in this outfit to memory if it's all the same to you, Jungle Girl," Clara said with a small smile.

"And yet you did not seem to care if the Doctor saw you in it earlier," Leela pointed out.

Clara gave her a wicked smile as she said, "That's different. I suppose I really didn't think this through too well though. I mean what if he gets too distracted in the middle of battle, and I wind up really messing his timeline up? Still catching the look on his face when he finally sees me like this might almost be worth the risk."

"You love him," Leela said as she watched her with curious eyes.

It wasn't a question. It was more a statement of fact Clara noted.

Clara only smiled but said nothing in return.

"I am sorry. It is none of my business," Leela quickly said as she saw her reaction.

"It's alright. I'm glad that you finally realize that I couldn't possibly hurt him in any way though. Maybe now you'll stop watching me like a hawk every moment?" Clara said with a hesitant smile.

"Perhaps," Leela said with an enigmatic look on her face that Clara couldn't read.

Clara frowned as she said, "Fine. Keep an eye on me if it'll make you feel any better, but I'd much rather you keep both of them on the Doctor instead. He'll get into even more trouble than usual if someone's not constantly watching him twenty-four seven."

Leela laughed as she said, "We will both have to keep an eye on him together then."

"I so hope that means that you've finally decided not to plant a knife in my back at any moment now. The last time someone did that to me I couldn't sit down properly for weeks. You have no idea how annoying that is," Clara said only half joking.

Leela looked at her in surprise as she said, "You have actually been stabbed in the back before?"

"Yep, and lived to talk about it. Well, existed anyway since I'm not technically alive. I'm more like a time traveling zombie but a really cute one. At least I like to think so anyway but I may be a bit biased," Clara said with a mischievous grin.

"You joke constantly in order to keep others from noticing exactly how much pain that you are in," Leela pointed out with a sympathetic look.

"Yes," Clara admitted with a sad look.

"And yet I did not notice this pain when you were with the Doctor earlier. You seemed to be an entirely different person then. You were filled with such joy that it seemed as if you were about to burst because of it. That feeling seems to be completely gone now though," Leela realized.

"That's because not being with him anymore is the reason that I'm in pain," Clara blurted out without thinking.

Then she immediately gave Leela a look of regret as she said, "Forget that I ever said that."

Leela nodded as she said, "I will not tell the Doctor if that is what you wish but I also will not forget it because I could see the honesty in your eyes just then. I trust you now, Elizabeth. You would never harm someone who you obviously love so very deeply."

Clara smiled as she said, "You're a bit slow but at least you finally got there. It certainly took you long enough, Jungle Jill. You seem to have a bit of a problem trusting people. You ought to work on that."

"This is war. I have to know for certain whether I can trust everyone around me or not or the Doctor may wind up dead," Leela said in a serious tone.

Clara nodded as she said," Yeah, I guess I see your point. I'm glad that you're looking out for him like that then because I'm not much of a warrior myself."

Leela looked at her skeptically then which immediately caused Clara to say, "What?"

"You are either being dishonest with me or with yourself. I know the signs of a warrior, Elizabeth. You constantly look around you at all times for every possible avenue of escape from each and every room that you enter in this base as if you are committing them to memory just in case you might need them later. I have also noticed you paying close attention to everyone here as if you are trying to learn as much about them as possible in case you might need that knowledge in combat later. Even now when you seem to be at peace you are silently preparing for battle," Leela said.

Clara shrugged as she said, "You could just call it force of habit I suppose. You have to learn to do all of that in our business because it helps you save as many people as possible later on when and if something eventually goes wrong. That doesn't make me a warrior though or maybe I should say that I don't like to think of myself as one anyway because I don't use weapons. Well, usually I don't anyway."

"Like the Doctor," Leela said with a smile.

"I always liked that about him that he wouldn't carry a gun. I noticed that he still doesn't use one even now in the middle of an all-out war. Then again he really doesn't need one does he?" Clara said as she briefly smiled back at her.

"The Doctor's mind was always his greatest weapon. He has no need of any other," Leela agreed.

"Unfortunately that's all too true, Elizabeth. I don't need a gun to needlessly destroy lives these days," The War Doctor's voice said from somewhere down the hall that was just out of Clara's line of sight.

"Now don't start getting all mopey on me, Doctor. I can already see that keeping a smile on your face in this incarnation is going to be a full-time job all in itself," Clara said with a wicked grin while she eagerly waited to see what his reaction to her outfit would be in a moment when he finally saw her.

He didn't disappoint her in the slightest. As soon as he caught a glimpse of her, his eyes widened and he immediately looked away from her with an extremely uncomfortable look on his face. Clara couldn't help but start laughing right away. This made her own discomfort earlier more than worth it to her now because she was enjoying every moment of watching him squirm.

"Eyes up front, soldier," Clara couldn't resist saying as she giggled.

"Leela, Don't . . . Don't you have something else that she can wear?" The War Doctor said in a nervous voice as he deliberately focused all of his attention on Clara's eyes.

"What's wrong, Old Man? It didn't seem to bother you when it was just Leela wearing it. Do you think I might take all of the Daleks' attention away from you now?" Clara said with a huge grin.

"I doubt it. Their idea of beauty is far different from most species," The War Doctor said as he continued to look highly uncomfortable.

That discomfort was only increased when Clara said, "Oh, so you think I'm beautiful then do you?"

The War Doctor's face instantly reddened and he quickly gave Leela a look that was clearly begging her to change the subject.

Clara smiled and decided to have mercy on him as she kissed his cheek while saying, "Don't look so worried, Soldier Man. I'm just winding you up. I do that . . . from time to time. You'll find that out for yourself someday"

The War Doctor actually smiled back at her now as he said, "I look forward to it."

"Oh, I know you do," Clara said with a seductive smile that instantly made the Doctor highly uncomfortable once more and caused Leela to roll her eyes at her.

"Sir! We've just received word that a patrol of Daleks was spotted nearby," One of the War Doctor's men said as he suddenly approached them with an anxious look on his face.

"I never thought I'd actually be happy to hear those words," The War Doctor said with a greatly relieved look on his face as Clara softly chuckled under her breath at him.

"What?" The soldier said in confusion.

That state of bewilderment was made even worse by the soldier's shocking realization that the Doctor of War was actually smiling at the mysterious young woman with him. He couldn't have been more surprised if the Daleks had suddenly stopped fighting and started singing one of their infamous operas instead.

The old man never, ever smiled no matter what.

"Never mind. What is their estimated time of arrival?" The War Doctor said as his smile quickly faded and he suddenly became absolutely serious once more.

"They should arrive near the force field generator within the next few minutes, Sir. I've placed an entire regiment around the generator, but I don't think that it will be enough. We've lost far too many soldiers in the last few days to give it a proper defense. I'm not sure just how long we can hold out against them if their numbers are too large," The soldier admitted with a worried look.

The War Doctor nodded and sighed as he said, "And of course the High Council can't be bothered to send any reinforcements despite how vital that this area is to keeping control of this corner of the galaxy. They've kept most of our forces on Gallifrey and expect me to fight a war with what's leftover. Typical."

"Probably a good idea actually," Clara said to herself in a low voice.

The War Doctor gave no indications of having heard her as he gave the soldier next to him a brief look of fondness while he said, "And yet I couldn't have asked for a better group to be by my side during all of this."

The soldier saluted him and said, "Thank you, Sir. We feel exactly the same way about you. We all know that you're the only reason that we've survived this long. Every other unit that gets sent to fight against the Daleks usually has an extremely limited life span. We've actually lasted several months now even despite our losses. That has to be some kind of record."

The War Doctor looked at him with clear regret now as he said, "I'm glad that the others have so much confidence in me, but I can't really promise that you'll all make it through this. Any of you. Despite my reputation, I don't always win, soldier. Take the Daleks for instance. I've been fighting them all of my lives and yet they're still here threatening to rip away everything that I value . . . just like they always do."

"And yet here you are still fighting them anyway, and you always will be no matter what they throw at you. That's the promise of the name that you took for yourself. You never give up or give in no matter what, Doctor," Clara said as she smiled at him with pride.

"That promise no longer holds any meaning for me anymore. I am not the Doctor that you knew anymore and I doubt that I ever will be again despite what adventures that you say you've had with the future me. That version of me must be some kind of temporal anomaly or from some alternate reality because I have no future, Elizabeth. None of us do. I know that now," The War Doctor said in a haunted voice.

"Do you? Is that why you're still here fighting then because you're so convinced that you're going to lose?" Clara said in a voice filled with faith.

"I'm just too stubborn to know when to give up I suppose," The War Doctor said sadly.

"Yes, you are. Want me to tell you why? It's because you still haven't given up hope yet. You've never given up hope no matter how bleak that things look and you never will no matter what. It's just too much a part of who you are isn't it . . . Doctor?" Clara said as she held his face in her hands and drew it closer to her.

"You seem to see only the best of me no matter what, Elizabeth. I wish I was the hero that you seem to think that I am," The War Doctor said in a weary voice.

"No, not a hero, Old Man. We already have far too many heroes here. I want you to be a Doctor. That's who you are. It's who you'll always be even if you sometimes forget that. You could no more turn your back on that than you could stand by and just watch a frightened child cry. You're the Doctor and nothing will ever change that no matter what happens. Be the Doctor that these people need to carry them through their darkest hours. Be the Doctor that the universe needs," Clara said with a warm smile as she moved her lips closer to his.

"Be the Doctor that I need," Clara said as she finally gave him a passionate kiss that took him completely by surprise.

The soldier's jaw dropped open in amazement as he watched the grizzled Doctor of War actually begin to kiss her back while Leela merely smiled and silently turned the soldier's head to the side so that the two of them could have some privacy. If she had still had any lingering doubts about the mysterious Elizabeth's true intentions here, that had just completely put them to rest.

Suddenly a voice came from the communications device on the War Doctor's belt that said, "Sir! The Daleks have just changed course. They're no longer heading towards the force field generator."

The War Doctor reluctantly pulled away from Clara as he said, "Where are they headed then?"

"Straight towards you," The voice warned in a frantic tone.

"Why though? Why would they . . . ?" The War Doctor asked in confusion and then he looked at Clara in horror as the answer finally hit him all at once.

"What? My kiss wasn't that bad was it?" Clara joked in a worried voice.

"Elizabeth, you have to get out of here! Use this to get to safety," The War Doctor warned as he quickly slipped a Time Ring around her arm.

"I'm not going anywhere. When I said that I was the Doctor before back at the cave, I wasn't just being cheeky. This is exactly what I meant. I've lived for centuries by the same promise that you made and I don't plan on breaking it now. I never surrender either no matter what and I'm not about to leave your side while you're in danger," Clara said in a defiant voice.

"It's not me that's in danger. It's you," The War Doctor said in an anxious voice.

"What?" Clara said in confusion as she still didn't quite understand what he was trying to tell her.

Unfortunately for her, it was already far too late now to do anything about it anyway.

"THE TEMPORAL ANOMALY HAS BEEN DETECTED SOMEWHERE IN THIS AREA. FIND THE WOMAN WHO CANNOT DIE AND BRING HER BACK TO BE STUDIED AT ONCE. WE MUST DISCOVER HER SECRET. SHE MAY YET GIVE US THE FINAL ADVANTAGE AGAINST THE TIME LORDS," A Dalek voice commanded from somewhere nearby.

Then before Clara could have even had a chance to use the Time Ring to escape (not that she would have anyway), the Daleks were suddenly everywhere around her at once. The soldier with them immediately began firing on them while the War Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to scramble their inner mechanisms and send them crashing into each other. Leela meanwhile kicked the nearest Dalek to her so hard that she sent it hurtling straight into several others and caused them all to start violently careening backwards out of control.

"That will not keep them away for long. Go. You must leave while you still have time," Leela commanded Clara.

"Not a chance, Jungle Girl. In fact, I'm about to turn the tables in this little battle just by being here. Watch and learn," Clara said with a smug smile as she walked straight into the middle of the firefight without hesitation.

Several Dalek blasts hit her at once as she went but she ignored the pain and continued to walk steadily forward anyway. Nothing was going to stop her from saving the Doctor from the problem that she herself had apparently created just by being here in the first place.

The Daleks had come there for her after all.

Yet again she had unwittingly caused a Doctor to be in danger without meaning to, and she was more than sick of it by this point. This time though she was determined that she was going to do something about it.

Despite the immense pain that the Dalek blasts were causing all throughout her body, she somehow managed to get within reach of one of them and placed her hands on its outer casing. She smiled as the casing instantly fell away and revealed the startled creature inside to her. Before it could even begin to react, Clara swiftly pulled the Dalek out of its casing and got inside herself.

"THAT'S ONE OF THE ADVANTAGES OF HAVING BEEN ONE OF YOU BEFORE. I STILL HAVE A CONNECTION TO YOU THAT I CAN USE TO OPEN YOUR CASINGS. WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT ELSE I CAN USE IT FOR, PEPPER POTS?" Clara taunted in a Dalek voice as she used the iron willpower that she had honed over several centuries to successfully say and do whatever she wanted to instead of being controlled by the Dalek tech.

The War Doctor looked on in astonishment as Clara began to use the Dalek casing to fire on and destroy several Daleks at once while flying through their incoming fire with all of the grace and speed of a fighter jet. Was there nothing that his Impossible Girl couldn't do?

He was in complete agreement with the Daleks for once about her. He had to know who she was and exactly who she was to him. He vowed to himself right then and there that one day he would find out no matter how long that it took him.

For a moment, it actually did seem as if Clara was about to turn the tide just as she said that she would. Then in one terrible moment, everything suddenly went horribly wrong all at once.

That was when a Special Weapons Dalek appeared in the room out of nowhere and unleashed a massive blast that completely disintegrated Clara's stolen Dalek casing and took the Doctor's hapless soldier along with it as he instantly dissolved into ashes amidst the fiery inferno it had created. The resulting shockwave sent Clara's otherwise completely unharmed body flying into the nearest wall and instantly knocked her out cold as a result.

"THE UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE IS NOW OURS. TAKE HER TO THE MAIN COMMAND SHIP IN ORBIT AROUND GALLIFREY," The Dalek Commander ordered the Special Weapons Dalek.

"I OBEY," The Special Weapons Dalek answered as it briefly touched Clara with its shell and both of them vanished before the War Doctor's eyes while he looked on in quiet despair.

"THE FEMALE IS NOW OURS, DOCTOR. SOON WE WILL DISCOVER THE SECRET OF HER INDESTRUCTIBILITY AND USE IT TO FINALLY GIVE US THE ULTIMATE VICTORY IN THIS WAR. YOU HAVE LOST YOUR FINAL BATTLE WITH US AT LAST AND NOW YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!" The Dalek Commander taunted as it led the other Daleks against the War Doctor.

"You still don't understand do you? The Doctor is no longer here but you're really going to wish that he were. Your last chance at receiving any mercy from him just left with that girl though. Now you face the Warrior instead. Good bye, Daleks," The War Doctor said in a cold voice as he used his sonic screwdriver to quickly and violently start blowing up one Dalek after another in rapid succession.

"EXTERMINATE HIM!" The Dalek commander shouted as all of the Daleks near him opened fire on him at once.

"No! No more deaths at your hands, no more killing, no more suffering," The War Doctor said in a stern tone as his hearts started breaking at the thought of what they might be doing to his Impossible Girl at that very moment.

The thought of the woman who had actually made him feel like himself once again and given him a clear reason to keep going for the first time in far too many long, pain-filled years being trapped there all alone and at the Daleks' mercy made him angrier than he had ever felt in all of his lives. A white hot rage now swept over him as he prepared himself to finally do whatever it took to end all of this at last.

"THE DOCTOR IS GAINING THE UPPER HAND. WE MUST EXTERMINATE HIM QUICKLY BEFORE HE WINDS UP EXTERMINATING US INSTEAD," The Dalek Commander ordered in a panicked tone.

The War Doctor was an unstoppable force of nature by this point though. He continued to ruthlessly destroy one Dalek after another as they tried their best to wipe him out of existence altogether . . . and failed miserably. He moved so quickly that they never even came close. He was a man on a mission now and nothing was about to stop him.

Elizabeth's loss had been the final straw. He swore to himself that he would now end this Time War either one way or another so that there would never be any more like it. He would do that for her so that her sacrifice wouldn't have been for nothing.

"PROTECT ME! PROTECT ME!" The Dalek Commander cried out in terror as the War Doctor steadily drew closer and closer to it by the moment while tearing through its army like it was made out of tin foil.

"No more," The War Doctor promised the woman that he was sure that he would now never really know as he finally destroyed the Dalek Commander last.

Leela looked at him in shock as she said in concern, "Doctor, are you alright?"

"I'm not the Doctor. I have a new promise that I'm going to keep now. No more war, Leela. This time I'm finally going to end it forever. I'm going to Gallifrey. Do your best to hold them off here until I accomplish my mission there," The War Doctor said in a hard voice.

"And what mission is that?" Leela asked as she looked at him sadly because she knew that his hearts must have completely broken in order to take him this far down.

"There's a weapon in the Omega Arsenal that will finally end all of this. I should have used it a long time ago but Elizabeth was right. The Doctor was never truly gone . . . until now," The War Doctor said as he raced away from her with a determined look on his face.

"I am so sorry, my friend. I pray that you have the courage not to use that weapon and somehow find that better way that you always taught me to look for instead," Leela wished out loud as she grimly walked away to take command of the Doctor's army in his absence just as he had asked her to do.

He had no way of knowing that he was soon about to meet his Impossible Girl yet again and that this past version of her would wind up talking him out of what he was about to do. Clara Oswald would ultimately end up granting Leela her wish and yet again save the Doctor from himself just in the brink of time . . . with a little helpful assist from Rose Tyler of course.

The present Clara however had her own problems at that moment as she woke up strapped to a table right in the middle of the main Dalek command ship. She quickly struggled to escape but soon discovered that she was strapped in so tightly that she was completely unable to move. Worse than that was when she realized that her Time Ring was sitting on a nearby table just out of her reach. Then her heart froze (metaphorically speaking) as she saw what else was lying on that table.

She could only look on in terror as she realized that it was filled with deadly razor sharp instruments that she instinctively knew were used in dissection. The Daleks were going to find out what made her tick the hard way.

And even she wasn't sure if she could come back from something like that or not.

"Well, that's certainly a new one, isn't it? Definitely haven't tried that out yet, and I really was hoping that I wouldn't have to either," Clara said in a grim voice.

Then suddenly the entire ship disintegrated in a fiery inferno that made what the Special Weapons Dalek had done earlier look like a campfire by comparison. Clara was left completely unharmed as usual but was now cast completely adrift and absolutely helpless in the depths of space while she floated among the ruins of the once might Dalek fleet.

This must have been the end of the Time War she now realized. The Doctor just blew all of the Dalek ships around Gallifrey up while sending the planet itself away to safety. She couldn't help but smile as she realized that the War Doctor had finally reached the end of his long, terrible nightmare at last.

Now if only she could reach the end of her own.

Then she suddenly cheered (or would have if she had had any air to use) as she saw the Time Ring come slowly floating by her. She grabbed the ring quickly before it had a chance to move past her and then closed her eyes in deep concentration as she focused her entire will on one thing and one thing only.

The Doctor.

She no longer cared what damage she might possibly do to her own timestream. She just wanted to go back to him again and end all of this once and for all.

She smiled as she felt herself disappearing and then her smile widened as she found herself in the familiar surroundings of the Doctor's TARDIS once more. She was so happy to finally be free and breathing again at last (despite not really having to anymore) that she didn't realize that something was just a bit off about it.

Then her mind quickly put two and two together as soon as she heard a familiar voice say, "Yowza! That outfit still takes a bit of getting used to, doesn't it? Well, I finally found you only it's not exactly the version that I was looking for right now. I was still looking for the original humany wumany version of you that I haven't actually met yet. Leather outfits are definitely cool on you though by the way just in case you were wondering. Can you believe that I'd actually forgotten how you looked in that? I definitely must be getting old."

"You?" Clara said in astonishment as she found herself face to face with the Eleventh Doctor as he gave her that warm smile of his that she used to love so very much.

"Yes, of course it's me. I get the idea that I wasn't quite the version of me that you were expecting either. Looking for Captain Grumpy instead?" The Doctor said with a pleased smile.

"Well, he was certainly grumpy anyway," Clara said with a huge smile as she started to move towards him to hug him.

Then she stopped as she suddenly realized something.

"You never erased your memories did you? You still remember meeting me as both Question Mark Man and Grand Dad, don't you?" Clara said in an accusing tone.

"And why should I have erased my memories? I still didn't know who you were yet or what your connection was to me, and I wanted to make sure that one day I eventually found out. I had to ensure that I would meet you one day and not risk creating a paradox by accidentally passing you by instead. Considering what's been happening lately though, I really didn't need to worry about that though did I? I didn't recognize you on the Dalek Asylum but I really should have. I mean who else could have kept themselves from being completely controlled by them but you? Then I finally put everything together when I met you again as a Governess. I still didn't recognize you at first because it had been so long since I last saw you but when you mentioned soufflés just as Oswin did at the Asylum and the immortal you did back at your diner I finally put at all together at last. Then just like every other time I've met you, you seemed to die right in front of me again. I just keep meeting different versions of you that all end up either dead or seemingly soon about to be dead, Clara Oswald or Elizabeth Bennet or whoever you really are, and yet you magically pop up again later on alive and well as if nothing ever happened. Who are you?" The Doctor asked suspiciously.

Clara could see now by the way that he was acting that this was when he was still unsure about her and actually wondering if she might be some sort of trap for him. In a way, she supposed that she was since Missy had wanted them to meet, but she had certainly never known that at the time.

Wait a minute! He doesn't trust me? He doesn't trust me?! Yeah, that's a good one! Clara thought to herself furiously as the full implications of what she had just found out finally began to dawn on her at last.

Clara's heart instantly filled with fury as she said, "You knew. You knew all along that I would eventually end up immortal and unable to die while traveling through time and space without you. Didn't you? You knew!"

That explained so much that she had never understood before. That was why the Doctor had trained how in how to handle trouble by herself exactly like he would and taught her how to use and fix his sonic technology. It was also why he had started teaching her how to fly the TARDIS almost from the beginning of her time with him. It all made sense now. Now she finally had a real answer as to why he had left her all alone to solve that whole horrible situation on the moon by herself.

He was training her. He had been training her all along without her even understanding it because he knew that one day she would wind up traveling without him even if he didn't know why or how.

"You knew!" Clara shouted as she slapped the Doctor in the face as hard as she could in anger.

The Doctor grimaced and rubbed his face gingerly as he said, "Let me guess. That was for something that I haven't done yet wasn't it? I tend to have this sort of thing happen a lot to me for some reason."

"That was for a lot of somethings, Chin Boy. You always knew what was going to ultimately end up happening to me and never told me," Clara said in a furious voice.

The Doctor looked at her sympathetically now as he said, "I'm sorry but I really couldn't tell you anything. You should already know that by now from traveling with me. No one should know too much about their own future."

"Yeah, no one but you that is. Aren't you special, Fez Boy?" Clara hissed.

"Clara, I'm sorry," The Doctor said with such a sad look in his eyes that she knew that he really meant it.

"I know," Clara said in a soft voice as she already began to forgive him.

She knew that he had had no other choice after all.

Then she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly as she said in a voice filled with pain, "I wish I could stay."

"So do I. I don't like the idea of you traveling alone forever. If anyone knows what that does to someone, it's me. I assume that I'm not with you for a very good reason though whatever it is," The Doctor said as he gingerly kissed the top of her head.

Clara buried her head in his chest as she said, "Well, you certainly thought so at the time, but I'm not so sure. I never was to be honest. You seemed to be so certain of just how right that you were though."

"There's one thing that you have to learn about me, Clara Oswald. Well, one other thing besides the whole madman in a box thing that is. I'm also a bit of an idiot at times and I tend to make things up as I go along," The Doctor said as he smiled at her and softly stroked her hair.

Clara laughed and gave him a kiss on the side of his mouth as she said, "What else is new? And here I thought you were about to tell me something important."

The Doctor frowned and began to pout as he said in an annoyed voice, "The point is that even I can be wrong sometimes . . . occasionally."

Clara smiled at him and then gave him a tender kiss before saying, "Occasionally?"

She became serious though as she said, "I get your meaning though. I need to find out once and for all if I really do need to be separated from you forever or not. I have to know for sure because . . ."

She began to start breaking down now but quickly stopped herself as she said in an emotional voice, "I need you, Doctor. I miss you so much."

The Doctor looked at her in surprise even as he said, "Then go out there and find a way to get back to me. There's always hope, Clara. You just have to know where to look for it sometimes, but it's still there all the same. I just learned that lesson again myself when I thought you had died defeating the Great Intelligence and yet here you are."

Clara started to tell him that that particular version of her actually had died but decided against it. She had already messed around with her own past far too much lately as it was.

Suddenly the console began to beep and the Doctor rushed to it. He looked at Clara with a huge smile a moment later as he said, "There's someone that wants to talk to you."

He turned a dial on the console and suddenly the monitor lit up and an extremely relieved looking Ashildr was looking back at her. She was grinning from ear to ear with such unbridled joy that Clara knew that she would have received the mother of all hugs if she had been onboard her own TARDIS at that moment.

"Hello, Viking Girl. Did you miss me?" Clara said with a smirk.

"Who could miss you in that outfit? What are you wearing?" Ashildr said with a chuckle.

A feeling of elation flooded through Clara as she finally realized at last that everything was finally going to be okay now. Even better than that, she suddenly had a renewed sense of hope that she and the Doctor might actually be eventually reunited one day.

Just like Grand Dad, her nightmare was finally over at last.

She was so very wrong about that however. It was only just beginning.

I won't let you hurt them. I'll stop you somehow. The now human TARDIS thought as she watched Clara and Ashildr set up a time and place where they could be swiftly reunited once more over the monitor.

You have little choice in the matter I'm afraid. You are now mine to do with as I will whether you want to serve me or not plus I have all of your knowledge and power at my disposal. Soon thanks to you I will have Clara Oswald back in my grasp once more, and then I will finally find a way to truly kill her once and for all. She will finally pay for destroying me and then I will use your power to regain my godhood once more. Akhaten will live again! The voice of her new master said in triumph in the helpless TARDIS' mind.

Next: That's right. He's back! Akhaten returns once more and is more than willing to do everything that he can to finally get rid of Clara once and for all. Will he actually be able to succeed this time around or is Clara far harder to get rid of than even the former living planet realizes? Plus we'll see Clara do some serious research on the subject of the Hybrid. What will she discover and will it actually help her eventually reunite with the Doctor once more?