Chapter 3: Time's Revelation
The Doctor brought out his Sonic Screwdriver and, with the push of a button, turned it on and aimed it towards the wall. The Gate of Tartarus began to groan and creak, indicating its defense mechanisms being activated. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU FOOL!" Luna shouted out. "I'm doing what has to be done. The way back is sealed off, and we can't get anywhere unless this fortress of a wall is destroyed. Please no tears, I'll be fine. In fact, this is part of the plan!" he yelled. As soon as the Gate's groaning ceased, its magical leech effect began and The Doctor screamed out in agony, making the three mares cry for their friend's sacrifice. After 5 minutes of the magic tearing away his life-force, the wall began to groan again. "(Grunts) If I could just last for a few more seconds…" Suddenly, the Gate of Tartarus collapsed, the leeching magic that affected The Doctor ceased, and he fainted from his depleted stamina. Derpy walked slowly up to the limp body that saved them, teary eyed and melancholy. "Doctor! Doctor, can you hear me? PLEASE WAKE UP, DOCTOR! I need you…" After a few minutes of tears, Princess Luna walked up to the distressed mare.
"I'm sorry Derpy, but not even he could survive the effects of our world's magic. The most we can do is lay the body to rest respectfully and properly. You've known him longer than me and Twilight. Is there any proper Funeral procedure for his race?" All Derpy could do was nod her head in sorrow. Just then, The Doctor's body began to glow and a golden aura was manifesting around him. In one sudden movement, he became conscious and looked at the three shocked ponies. "Oh, hello again! Why the surprised looks? Oh right, none of you have actually seen me regenerate, have you?" They nodded. "Well then, you're in for quite a show, because this one's a doozy! But before I actually regenerate, do you two Princesses think you could use your horns to absorb the energy burst about to happen?" Luna and Twilight looked at each other. "Yes, I think we can manage, Doctor." Twilight replied. After that, the regeneration process began. In a sudden burst, The Doctor's wounds began to heal and he was becoming reinvigorated by the second, all while the two alicorns were absorbing the excess energy.
The building shook all around them as his wounds were still being treated. Even some of the walls became torn and cracked in a few areas. After it was done, The Doctor was fully healed and didn't have to morph into a new pony. At the same time, the two princesses' horns started to glow a bright golden color. "So THAT'S what your regenerative energy feels like! It's unlike any other I've felt on this planet! Why if me, Twilight, and Celestia combined our power, even that wouldn't be enough to match the strength of your regenerative energy!" Luna exclaimed.
"You're welcome, but you might want to get that horn looked at." The Doctor replied. After the dust settled, the room revealed was the Hall of stories, filled with murals on each side, but instead of being filled with Celestia and Luna's stories of battle along with the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, it depicted The Doctor's most famous adventures and battles. "What are these, Doctor?" Derpy asked curiously. "They're murals, but instead of them showing everything the kingdom of Equestria had accomplished, these ones show my stories- my past." He said, looking at the first one. "What do the titles say? It seems I can't read them, Doctor." Twilight said. "*sigh* The language is Gallifreyan, only I can read them. If you're interested in a certain mural in particular, I can translate it for you, but be warned: most of them have a deep emotional connection to me. I would advise to choose the ones that pique your curiosity the most." They looked around for a while, looking curiously at The Doctor's history. "What does this one say over here?" Luna asked. It showed a vast city, encased in a large glass dome, except the dome was scarred and in certain places it was cracked. Surrounding the city was a field of red grass. In certain spots on the grass were burned and destroyed by remnants of Dalek ships. "It's entitled 'The Fall of The Citadel'." He said.
"This was the last great city of my people, where the Time Lord Council was held. On the last day of the Time War, a device was used called 'the Moment'- a sentient machine capable of destroying both the Daleks and the Time Lords. Needless to say it worked, leaving my race wiped out and me the sole survivor of the planet Gallifrey." After hearing its story, Princess Luna felt saddened by the loss The Doctor had experienced. After a few more minutes of looking, Derpy pointed out a mural that had what looked like her in it. "Doctor, what's this one about?" she asked. In the glass mural, The Doctor was stepping out of the TARDIS and at the same time, Derpy was greeting him. "This one's called 'The Ponyville Arrival'. It's the first time I ever came to this dimension. Do you remember? I walked out of my TARDIS and you found me. You were the one who told me I was an Earth Pony." Derpy giggled. "Yes, I do remember. It was the first time we met and you didn't believe me about how there were Unicorns and how our society was Egalitarian." Twilight stared at one final mural: it depicted a lone stallion in the midst of a battlefield, and surrounding him were piles of corpses. This lone stallion is kneeling, weeping for his lost comrades. "What does this one say?" She asked. "This mural's title is 'The Lonesome Warrior'. It shows my grievance for each and every lost soul of Gallifrey. I regret every decision I had to make on that fateful day. With every passing century, I think about what I did to doom my people's chance for survival, and it's why I run. I am tired, so very tired of running. I just want a normal life without danger and destruction." The Doctor said, with an air of sadness in his tone. There was one painting left that all 4 ponies noticed.
"Doctor, is that a 3D painting?" Derpy asked curiously. He nodded. "How is that possible? It seems darn near impossible to me!" Princess Twilight added. The Doctor looked at it for a moment, in depth. The painting was a depiction of a battle in the Time War, with Time Lords fighting the Daleks zooming past in their ships. In the corner in the far back, he saw a small portion of two words- No More. "This is the most impossible painting! Like our TARDISes, the Time Lords had developed art unlike any other. The art was bigger on the inside, but sadly most of them were destroyed during the Time War. Very few survived and were lost to time and space."
"I get that much, but what makes it impossible?" Twilight asked. " Ah, but what makes this painting impossible is the fact that it was made on the exact same day as the battle it depicts!"
"But how does it work?" Luna asked, curiously looking at this piece of history.
"Basically, they trap a moment in time and keep it preserved inside a bubble, well when I say bubble… It's spacey-wacey, timey-wimey stuff you wouldn't understand!" He responded.
Twilight, out of curiosity and intrigue, asked "What does the title say?"
"That's odd- it has two titles instead of one. It's either Gallifrey falls, or No More. It's very odd that it has two. The artists must've had a debate about the title, so they added the two most popular probably through an electoral system. I've always hated the long winded and boring speeches that a debate gave rise to. I'll worry about this anomaly later. Right now, our main goal should be to get out of this labyrinth!" The Doctor said.
Far away in a Dalek ship…
"HE IS HEADING TO THE DEVICE! NOW IS THE TIME TO STRIKE, WHILE HE IS CLUELESS AND INVULNERABLE!" The Dalek Supreme stated.
"No. Scans indicate he is strongest when moving towards a particular directive. We must let the plan run its course. Initiate Phase 3. His emotions are where he is weakest. Therefore, we must anger him, and make him blind to our true motives through this rage."
Back at the Time Lord maze…
The ancient gears started turning again in the distance, transforming the layout of the maze to a new shape. "Can you hear that?" The Doctor asked. Just like earlier, the other ponies couldn't hear the noise, making him even more curious about the predicament they're in. "The gears are turning once more, and they still can't hear it. This must be a very powerful maze if it could mask the noise of the massive machinery for normal ponies. This maze is designed to mirror certain places and contraptions from Equestrian history. I dread to find out what is ahead, but as long as I have my friends, I might be able to figure it out in time." Suddenly, the room they were in started to rumble and shake violently. Dividers sprouted up from the floor, isolating The Doctor from Twilight, Luna, and Derpy. A screeching noise came on, and the two alicorns started screaming in agony and passed out from the pain. "Luna! Twilight!" he screamed. The Doctor's face was no longer showing his normal, curious self, but that of an angered god. "Whoever is playing these tricks and hurting my friends, know this: you've made me very, very angry. I was planning to negotiate with whoever you are, but now I vow to stop you and whatever plans you have, this I swear!"
