Heeelllloooooo Readers! Long time no see, eh? Well, this story came pretty easy, so I thought "What the heck? Let's go ahead and update early!" So here, I am… updating and what not. It's rather long, though. See ya at the end! Have fun ;)
Waves from the ocean lightly kissed the soles of my bare feet. I groaned. My whole body was sore, probably from tossing and turning in the water. Well, that's what my mind came up with anyway. How else would I be in pain on a beach?
Wait, that wasn't right. My eyes snapped open and I instantly regretted it. Bright light blinded me and I saw black dots as I was thrown back into the water.
I was floating. That's what it felt like. I kicked my feet a little and realized that I was indeed floating… but I was underwater. Remembering what happened last time I opened my eyes, I let my other senses take over first. My breath was caught in my lungs and throat but for some reason I felt like I could breathe. So I tried to. And I could.
What?
I could hear and feel bubbles rushing towards the surface from my mouth. Okay, weird. Was this a dream? Why was I asleep? Fear clenched my belly into knots. Where was I? How could I breathe underwater?
"Eve." My eyes flew open and I saw my savior.
"Doctor." My voice was muffled from the water. The Doctor was in his usual attire—bow tie and floppy hair floating all about. But even with the sight of him, I was still scared. "Where am I?"
"In your consciousness. You're asleep. Or passed out. Either way, not awake." He reached out through the water and found my hand. "I'm going to find you." With our fingers intertwined, I gasped at how real his hand felt in mine. He was colder than the water and that felt oddly comforting.
Suddenly, bubbles were all around us, pulling me away from the Doctor. "No!" I tried to reach my other hand to grab him, but the bubbles were too strong. Water rushed passed, dragging me up. My fingers were barely grasping his.
"Eve! Stay alive. I'm coming to get you." And despite my last efforts, I was wrenched from the safe, dark abyss—away from my Doctor. And I was once again bathed in dark unconsciousness.
When Eve woke up, her stomach lurched from nausea. "Hunh," I gagged and reached for the nearest object that looked like a trash can. Throwing up all the contents that were in my stomach (which wasn't much), I then got a good look at my surroundings. And that just made my stomach hurt even more.
I was in a cage. Like the type of cage that dogs were in at the shelters. The bars were a black metal that had a lock on the farthest right corner. A small bed occupied the back well. There was the can I just puked in, resting in one corner and small stool in the other. I was in a jail cell.
But I wasn't in jail, was I? Across from my cage was another cell with a strange looking creature occupying the small bed. It reminded me of a lion, with a huge, fluffy, blonde mane and a big snout. He had orange skin and claws retracted from his fingers and toes. His face appeared to be wet, and his rounded ears that sat on top of his head were drooped. He seemed to be crying.
"Hello?" I spoke to the creature tentatively. His ears and eyes flicked up towards me, and I felt a surge of hope at the fact that he could understand me. "Hi, what is this place?"
I saw him snort sadly and then he wiped his face with his forearm. "I didn't know where I was either when I first came here."
He didn't answer my question, but at least he could understand me. "How long ago was that?"
I came towards the bar and clutched them. I almost expected them to electrify me, or something, but they didn't. The lion boy just looked at me sadly and said, "A week."
Before I could speak again, he snarled. "But it didn't take long for me to figure out exactly where I was. After a few days, I knew."
My mouth went dry at his vehemence. This didn't sound good. "Where? Where are we?"
His eyes were almost black—scared and anger, rolled thunderously around in his irises. "Hell."
He threw me one last sorrowful look, before lying down on the uncomfortable looking bed and turning away from me. I gasped when I saw his back. Red gashes covered his orange skin. They were rough and long, and I realized then what torture he must have gone through to acquire them. The creature had lost hope. After one week, he was convinced no one was coming to the rescue. But I wasn't going to lie down and submit to whatever or whoever did this to me.
"I know you lost all hope," and then I spoke louder because I knew others were in here, lost souls that were forgotten. "I know things are bad and we're locked in here with no means of escape. But I'm telling you, right now—I am not hopeless. We will get through this. We will make it out of here. And I know exactly who's gonna do it."
The room was silent. They had to hear me and believe it. I looked at my jail-mate and realized he wasn't even looking at me. He was staring in horror at someone that was just out of my line of sight.
Then I heard a chuckling, dark and evil. It seemed to extract all the light from the room. "And who might that be?" A man dressed in a neatly pressed, expensive white suit stepped in front of my cage and smirked at me. "Who would be mad enough to try to rescue you, human?"
I swallowed. "A man—a man with no name."
He laughed and looked around his jail. He then stalked towards my cell and I took an involuntary step back. This man reeked of despair and fear. I didn't want him anywhere near me. "A man with no name, you say? Interesting. What's a man without a name?"
Then it was my turn to laugh and it may have gone a little hysterical. But I didn't care because I knew, in the bottom of my being, that he would come. He would save these helpless people and me from this horrific man.
"A man without a name," I gave him the most bravest look I could muster, "is a dangerous one."
We stared each other down. His eyes were like shark's eyes, beady and black. Lifeless. For a second, I felt as hopeless as any other creature in here. But then I heard a door open and it snapped me out of it. I will not give in to him.
"Sir," a manly voice spoke to the evil man in front of me, "we have a visitor."
My lips broke into a smile and I didn't dare take my eyes off of my captor. I could have said, "I told you so," or "HA!" but I didn't. I just looked at him, triumphantly. Because I knew it was him; it was my Doctor.
Still staring at me, he nodded. "Good. Tell the others to set up a special cell in the grand room. I want my only human in my collection to be on display." His mouth quirked up into a small smile that made me want to tremble, but I held firm and watched him leave. Collection? Display? Did this man collect… people? This wasn't a jail; this… this was a storage compartment. Different species all packed together in neat little containers, forced to live their life in a small cage like domesticated animals. Not animals… more like trophies. I turned my head towards the lion boy and saw him stare at me in curiosity.
When the door was firmly closed, locking us inside once more, the orange creature spoke. "You were not afraid."
"Like, hell, I was. But he didn't need to know that."
"But he already knew. Qino loves to break his new play things." But his dark eyes still looked at me differently. A spark was lit in them, I could tell. "This man, with no name, you believe he will save us?"
My body wanted to reach out and hug him. He was so lost and scared, but I gave him hope and that made everything seem a little better. Just a smidge. I was still in a cage, mind you. "I know he will."
His mane shook with the nod of his head, and then he sat back down calmly on his bed. Studying the floor, I had to ask him on last question before I was taken away to my "special cell."
"What is your name?"
He didn't respond right away, and for a moment, I thought he didn't hear me. I was about to ask again when he looked at me once more. His eyes were ablaze with determination and hope.
"Chiron. My name is Chiron."
I gave him a confident smile. "Well, Chiron, my name is Eve, and I'm gonna bust us out of this joint."
The Doctor felt a rage build up from his stomach that he hadn't felt in years.
Everything around him was tinged a little red as he threw levers and punched buttons. How come the universe never gave him peace? He wanted to show Eve, oh so innocent Eve, a good time tonight—show her that its not always ultimatums and running for your lives. That sometimes, there was good in other species. But humans aren't that different from others. They still feel fear, anger, jealousy, happiness.
In Qino's instance… insanity.
He gave a guttural cry as he slammed down the last lever and then he just stopped. His head was bent over, arms leaning against the console, and his breathing was rasp. He couldn't go looking for her like this. She'd probably be more scared of him than she was of Qino.
"Okay, just… calm down. Get her out, safely, and this will all be behind us. Just get. Her. Out." He couldn't—would NOT—lose another friend. Not now. Not today.
Leaving the invisible shield on and landing silently, he peeked out the door and scanned for life forms with his screwdriver. All clear, he soundlessly slipped out of his ship and into a dimly lit corridor. He was in Qino's territory now; he had to be careful.
The Doctor stood silently, listening for sounds—any at all that would give him any indication where Eve might be. Then he heard it. Shouts and yells to his left. He took off without thought and followed the sounds, always checking around corners for guards. Surprisingly, none were in his way as he sprinted down several hallways until he came to a metal door. He sonic-ed around the lining of the door frame and sighed in frustration. Dead bolted. How could he have let this happen?
"Who do you think you are?" The Doctor didn't even turn around. Anger surged through him causing his shoulders to shudder. He was almost grateful that Eve wasn't here to witness this darkness engulfing him.
"Who, do you ask? Who?" Turning around he gave the man dressed in white and his two bodyguards an evil, dangerous smirk. "I'm the man with no name, Qino Mars. And I think you have something of mine."
A few moments later a man came by and threw me a plain white dress. "Put this on. Quickly," The burly man commanded.
Clenching my teeth, I commanded right back. "Turn around."
"Privacy is the least of your worries," He added curtly before, thankfully, turning around. I was glad he did because I didn't want him to see my shaking hands trying to put on the flimsy gown. I stripped out of my beautiful red one and slipped into the white. Looking down I realized it fit perfectly, accentuating my curves and resting on my toes. It was long-sleeved and tight. I would have actually like it, if it weren't for the terrible situation.
"Let's go." He unlocked the gate with a metal key from around his belt and then gruffly grabbed me by the arm. My hair fell down in dark brown waves as I stumbled down the hall and into a gigantic room. All around were glass cages holding wonderful creatures, some walking on twos and some on all fours. Some were pacing, others were lying about on comfortable looking couches. The cages weren't big though and I counted 10, leaving one empty on the very end… for me.
The guard led me to the empty cell and punched in a code that opened an invisible door in the glass. It made a hissing noise as it released.
"Will I be able to breathe in there?" My heart was sinking to my stomach fast. What if I suffocated in that terrible glass case?
He didn't answer, just pushed me roughly into the glass box. Before he closed the door, his eyes met mine and he gave a heavy sigh. "You can breathe. But he can control it. So do what he says. Don't be brave. Just… stay alive." And with that, he sealed me in, pressed his forehead to the door and walked away, leaving me alone with his parting words.
'Stay alive…' That's what the Doctor said to me in my dream. Just stay alive. I sat on the floor and pulled my knees to my chin. "Stay alive," I whispered into my cage. "The Doctor will save you, just… stay alive." I repeated it like a mantra, a chant, and a prayer.
Despite the Doctor's tough words, he was still apprehended by the guards and escorted forward with his arms firmly secured behind his back. Qino Mars walked in front of him and the Doctor held back his urge to kick Qino's heels together. If this man did anything to Eve, he'd do more than trip him, though. The man wouldn't see another day.
Finally, he was led through a door and into a grand room. There was a very long table in the middle of the room and it was set for a dinner party. White glassware was on top of white placemats and the Doctor could see white gold spoons, forks and knives gleaming from beside the plates.
"White, interesting color choice considering…" The Doctor nodded toward the glass cages lining the dining room.
"It's a beautiful color, yes? White; so pure, so… holy." Qino was smiling at a case in particular. It was an unnerving kind of smile that made the Doctor follow his gaze. Inside a glass case at the end of the row was a young girl with long dark hair, creamy skin, and a long white gown. Eve. She was staring at him with a blankness he's never seen in her before. It scared him to think about what Qino has done to her.
Qino was right about one thing, though: Eve looked like a holy angel. A dark haired angel, all she needed was wings and a halo. Eve was standing up hands clasped in front of her. She looked so calm, so peaceful. But the Doctor knew the real Eve would be kicking and screaming, yelling obscene curse words at the man who captured her. His fury was barely under the surface when he spoke next.
"What have you done to her?"
He chuckled and walked towards her case. "Oh, just a few chemicals in the air supply to keep her calm. She's feisty, this one. I can see why you'd want to keep her."
"She's not my trophy, Qino. She's a person. Like all the others you got in here. They are not meant to live a life like this. Now, I'm going to tell you—calmly this time, next is going to be a lot more meaner and possibly result in pain for you—let her go."
Qino looked at him for a moment before returning his attention to Eve. "You know, she is the only human in my collection. They're all over the universe, coming to this planet for whatever reason and I've never captured a human. Interesting." He put his hand up on the glass. Eve stared at it and the Doctor watched her eyes change—just slightly. A spark. That's all he needed. "They don't have colorful skin or fur. They don't have claws or tails. They can't breathe underwater or even too high in the air." Eve then stared into the man's face. And she tilted her head to the right, trying to make sense of it all. "They're fragile and oh, so, very… human. They have ventured to space with time and ease. They're everywhere and yet, I didn't have a single one. I don't know why, but now I do and I want to keep it." Qino slowly turn towards the Doctor with a small, dangerous smile playing on his lips. "Understand, man with no name?"
The Doctor betted his guards could feel his shoulders shake with fury because they tightened their hold on him.
That's when Eve looked at him. Really looked at him. Recognition flared in her green eyes as her mouth opened slightly. She was here—actually here, mind and all. Eve's eyes widened at Qino then back at him. He kept his face a mask as he glanced back at Qino.
"Oh, I understand, Qino, but know this… I do have a name." With that the Doctor wrenched an arm out of the grasp of one of the guards, elbowing him in the nose with incredible strength and grabbed his sonic screwdriver in one fluid motion. He pointed the screwdriver toward the ceiling and with one powerful frequency, the lights disappeared and all you could hear was screaming.
Once the lights were out, all the creatures in the cases started shrieking with terror. I remained quiet though and tried to will my eyes to evolve in the next few seconds. The Doctor was nowhere to be found. She heard scuffling though, since the last time she saw the guards, Doctor, and Qino, they were beside her case.
"The lights! Turn on the lights!" Hearing Qino's hysterical screaming made me chuckle just a little.
The screaming creatures seemed to quiet down and I worried if someone had sprayed more of that stupid calming chemical in the air. I started to hold my breath for as long as I could.
"You see, Qino, I do have a name!" The Doctor's voice seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere all at once. "A name that used to strike every planet with either hope or fear. With terror or relief. And even if my name didn't scare them, then certainly my title did."
I was spinning wildly in my cell, trying to catch a glimpse of the man that was going to save my life, again. A laugh bubbled up through my throat and out of my mouth. I don't know why, but this show was entertaining. Imagining Qino and his guards completely frazzled, not knowing where this man was. I was suddenly filled with such joy that I again wondered if they sprayed something in the air. I felt safe, undeniably safe, even if I was still in this stupid box, I knew the Doctor, my Doctor, was going to save me. And even better, he was putting on a show.
"What's your name?" I shouted, gleefully, and hoped he heard me.
"Aha! I'm the Doctor!
Laughing, because he heard me and knew it was me. I shouted back, "Doctor WHO?"
"One! More! Time, Eve-y!"
"Doctor WHO?!" It almost felt like a rehearsed musical play we were singing. He and I were laughing madly and hysterically. His voice was all around me, even in my encasement.
And then everything stopped, and the lights snapped on, but it didn't matter. With my head tilted up, I smiled at the Doctor who was smiling down at me. And for that split second, I loved him. I loved him more than anything I've ever loved before.
But just like that, he was looking back at Qino, who was on the other side of the room, flanked by a couple guards, but he knew it wouldn't be enough. His face said it all—he was defeated, so utterly and completely defeated.
"I'm the Doctor, Qino. The Oncoming Storm. And if that doesn't frighten you, this certainly will. I am the Last of the Time Lords. But most importantly, I was the one who killed them all." And with that he started using his screwdriver on every glass case in the room. Creatures of all shapes, sizes, and colors leaped out and made a run to the door that was away from Qino.
Qino stared, horrified that his precious "special" trophies were gone. He sank to his knees, vanquished. The guards turned and looked at each other, not knowing what to do with their conquered master.
"Eve, grab my hand." Returning my eyes above me, I reached up and grabbed the Doctor's hand. With surprising strength, he lifted me up onto the glass case alongside him. Even with me by his side, he didn't let go of my hand.
His eyes were hard and dark as he looked back at Qino and then above him. The Doctor raised his screwdriver up towards a giant chandelier that hung above the man who imprisoned me. The wires that attached the light fissure started to spark and sputter. It only took me a split second to realize what he was about to do.
"Doctor! No!" I pushed his arm down with my own and kept it there with all my strength.
The Doctor scrunched his eyebrows at me, incredulously. "He kidnapped you and all those other creatures; tortured them all and would have done the same to you. Why would you want me to let him live?"
"It's not yours to decide who lives or dies, Doctor. No matter how incredible you are, you're still just a man. Don't stoop to levels lower than that." My eyes pleaded with his as I gripped his arm in a vice. I knew the Doctor admitted what he'd done to his people. But the idea of the Doctor killing anyone else, even someone as cruel as Qino, made me want to cry.
His arm stopped fighting mine and he glared fiercely at the defeated man on his knees. "If I hear you capturing people again, I will find you. And I will end your sick obsession the hard way." The Doctor raised the sonic, again, but this time using a different frequency to bring the TARDIS wheezing into the room. The Doctor helped me down from off the glass case, catching me as I fell into his arms. He never did let go of my hand. Qino still sat on the ground, staring hopelessly into space. Even though I didn't want the Doctor to kill him, I still didn't feel an ounce of pity.
"Hey, douche-bag." Qino surprisingly looked up at me, his face was wet from shedding tears and it reminded me once more about the cages in the storage compartment. "Tell one of your guards to open up the cages where you keep your 'less special' creatures. I have a friend in there waiting to be rescued."
The guard that spoke to me earlier stepped up in front of Qino and smiled a little. "I, uh, already did that, miss. Chiron is your friend, yes?"
Smiling greatly, I nodded. The guard marched toward us and I felt the Doctor tense beside me, but I gave him a look that he just shrugged to.
When he finally got near, he spoke, "He told me to tell you: 'Thank you for giving us hope when all seemed lost.'" The guard chuckled, "He told me he was going to write a song about you."
I laughed, "A song? About me? Oh, jeez, whatever would he name it?"
"He said he's going to call it 'My Angel.' Because you saved them. You saved them all."
My jaw slacked and the breath I held in me whooshed out. My… Angel? As in Doctor and Angel. As in… me? I'm—could I? But I'm just… Eve.
"Eve?" The Doctor touched my shoulder, willing me to look at him. "Are you okay? Your face is all pale-y and your pupils are dilated."
"Maybe it's the after effects from the chemicals?" The guard suggested.
I kept my eyes locked on the Doctor. My mind was whirling and the room was spinning. The only thing that was standing still was him and he wasn't getting out of my sight. He didn't take his eyes off me either when he said, "I think I should take her back to the TARDIS." Numbly, I nodded my agreement, but I had to give my thanks to the guard that helped me save the day.
Sucking in a ragged breath and turning to the guard, I forced a smile. "Chiron should be making a song about you. You let them out. You saved them more than I did." I sighed, and then asked, "What is your name, anyways?"
"It's Ryan. And, yeah, I may have unlocked the gates, but I didn't give them hope, Eve. I could never give them that. You were their angel and I was just the one with the key." Ryan lifted his fingers to my cheek. "I regret everyday I worked here. Should have quit a long time ago, but the family needs to survive, you know? Maybe one day, I can inspire people the way you did today. If I do anything with my life, that's what I wish to do."
I gave him a grin and then the Doctor coughed. "Right, well, like I said, time to go." Rolling my eyes at the Doctor, I threw Ryan once last good-bye and walked to the TARDIS.
Back inside the safe infinite confinements of the ship, the Doctor sent her back into the Time Vortex. "So, will that teach you to ever want to travel on Sundays, again?"
I snorted at him, "That was totally not my fault!"
"Well, it definitely wasn't mine!" shouted the Doctor, but his eyes weren't angry—they were relieved.
Without thinking, I ran up to him and jumped him in a hug before he could protest.
"Umph!" He grunted when he caught me.
My eyes squeezed shut and a breath I didn't know I was holding finally came out. "I just wanna let you know, I never gave up on you." Taking a step back, I sighed. "Thank you for saving me." Awkwardness and uneasiness crept onto me as we continued to stare at each other in the blue light of the TARDIS. Then I remembered what I had on. Pulling at the sleeves, I scrunched my nose. "Ugh. If I don't get out of this ridiculous dress soon, I'm going to puke." We both chuckled and then I made my way to the room that had become mine while on the TARDIS. As my feet took me away from the Doctor, I remembered what Ryan said about Chiron's song, "My Angel." So, all those years of hearing stories about the Doctor and Angel, I never really believed that it was me. Not even when I began having those dreams or when I first met the Doctor, it never really hit me until now. I was Angel. I was the Doctor's Angel. And to be honest, I couldn't help but think—was that a good thing?
The Doctor watched Eve leave the room, thinking about what could have happened today if Eve hadn't stopped him. If he just continued finding the right frequency to bring that chandelier down on Qino's head, what would happen then?
Self-destruct. That's what he does when he's alone—becomes the worse parts of himself. He was surprised Eve didn't run away and hide when she realized what he intended to do.
The Doctor's chin stuck out even more and he exhaled, making the fallen hair on his forehead to fly up. Muttering to himself, "Oh, Eve. Eve, Eve. I think it was you who saved me today. You were my savior—my Angel."
A ding interrupted his thoughts, momentarily erasing them from the forefront of his mind. "Ooh! Physic paper messages. Lovely!"
Flipping open the tiny, leather folder he almost squealed. "Eve! Get a good night's sleep! Because tomorrow we are going to test your adventure stamina!" And with that he went about collecting coordinates and specific dates, dancing around the console room like it was a playroom.
Tomorrow, they were going to Candy Land.
So, guys… how'd you like it?
And, yes, I know I brought another feline friend/ creature into the mix… Not that I prefer cats or anything. It just seems logical that a cat would become a talking humanoid thing before a dog…? I don't know. Whatever. I don't care, I thought Chiron was cute and maybe we'll see him again, but a lot less depressing, yeah?
Alllllrighty. Well, I really do enjoy reading feedback from you guys. I'll try to reply and whatnot! I love hearing from you and hope you're ready for the next Doctor and Eve adventure! (Candy Land? Hell yes!)
Laters, lovelies xoxo