I don't own Doctor Who.
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Chapter 7: Death
Lilly landed hard on her back knocking the wind out of her. The time jump had been a relatively easy trip, but the landing had made up for it. She tried to hold completely still until she could breathe again. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She felt disoriented. A small space craft flew by the crystal clear ceiling above her, as tiny specks of starlight twinkled in the background behind it. She noticed the Face of Boe's entourage staring down at her. The men had orange skin and were covered in brightly colored robes that reminded Lilly of some kind of kung fu movie.
Jack! thought Lilly, trembling. She ignored the pain in her broken arm as she covered her face with her hands. Her tears for him were still threatening to fall. She'd just seen him die. He'd died for her, to save her. Watching the show, she would have thought, whatever, he'll be fine in a minute. But seeing what he went through was very different. The tortured look on his face, his pain, the smell of death after he'd gone, and knowing the fact that Captain Jack never knew for sure if he would come back again, crushed Lilly's spirit. She let out a sob. That man had won himself a very special place in Lilly's heart.
Suddenly, the whole station shook with a deafening thunder-like noise.
No!
Lilly sat up abruptly. That's not supposed to happen yet! She scrambled to her feet, wiping her tears off of her face. This wasn't over. The aliens backed away to give her room.
"Honored guests may be reassured that gravity pockets may cause slight turbulence. Thanking you." Lilly heard the stewards voice.
Platform One wasn't supposed to have 'gravity pockets' until after Rose and the Doctor had their argument in the private viewing room. That would mean Rose had already spoken with Raffalo. Lilly's heart sank. She'd missed her opportunity to warn the Doctor about the plumber. Raffalo would be dead. Lilly covered her frown with her hand, and turned frantically around the room. How had the spiders killed her? What had she suffered? The idea of dying in an air duct, killed by spiders sent a cold feeling of dread through Lilly. She clenched her jaw and tightened her hands into fists to keep from falling apart.
Her fear and terror turned to anger, anger like she'd never felt before. She was angry at the Nestine Consciousness for all the people it killed. She was furious with Torchwood for terrorizing her and murdering Jack. She was angry Cassandra had killed Raffalo. And she was furious Cassandra was about to murder so many more. Lilly's heart pounded in her ears. Is this what rage feels like? She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She purposefully unclenched her jaw. Stay calm, she told herself, trying to pull it together. She turned to the orange men.
"You have to begin evacuating this station," she ordered in the most authoritive voice she could muster. She may have sounded calm, but inside she was in turmoil. An alien stepped forward holding open the ornate gold box the vortex manipulator had been stored in. Apparently, she was expected to return it. Lilly began removing the device while she spoke.
"Did you understand what I said?!" she asked. "This station isn't safe! You've got to evacuate or people are going to die!" She placed the vortex manipulator hurriedly back into its cradle, and the alien closed the lid. Lilly jumped, startled when the solid looking decorative pieces on the outside of the box moved systematically locking the lid in place with a loud click. The aliens chuckled at her.
"It's just a gravity pocket, Miss Lilly," one of the aliens spoke up. "And that is just a simple lock box." He pointed to the golden chest. "A woman from the past wouldn't be familiar with the realities of life in the present. Trust us. You are safe here. Though all this must seem like magic to you." His voice was condescending.
"Where's the Face of Boe?" Lilly moved quickly towards the exit as she spoke. Maybe he could get at least some of the people evacuated.
"He has returned to his other duties," one of the other aliens stated. "You are only one of the many problems the great and wise Face of Boe has to solve." The alien raised his head, and looked down at her like she was some kind of inconvenience.
"If you stay, you die. I've seen the future." Lilly didn't waste anymore time talking. It was obvious they weren't going to listen. She ran back into the main room. She had to find and warn the Doctor. He could still solve this.
The main room was filled to capacity with aliens. When did so many aliens arrive? They were all in danger. Every precious life filling the room was in peril. It was hard to maneuver through them, especially with so many children underfoot. Lilly found the only way to get through the crowd was to press herself through the visitors, hurting her broken arm as she went. She was greeted with exasperated comments.
"How rude!"
"What's your problem?"
"Were you born on Flagara or something?" Lilly ignored them. She just kept pressing until she reached an area where the number of guests thinned. Finally, Lilly could see the doorway at the other end of the room. Next to it stood the Doctor and Rose talking with Jabe. The Doctor and Jabe turned to leave, and Rose headed off in another direction.
"Doctor!" Lilly shouted. But he hadn't heard her over the noise of the crowd. Lilly managed the last thirty yards to the doorway. She stepped through, and looked quickly from right to left. The Doctor was no where to be seen. She was too late. "AAA!" shouted Lilly. She smacked the wall with the palm of her hand. Her arm screamed in protest.
She grabbed her aching forearm in response to the pain, and was surprised to feel something hard. Lilly looked at it. There was a hole in the sleeve of her jacket. Puzzled, she quickly removed it. She pulled her long sleeve out of the way, noticing it had a hole too. She was stunned. Imbedded in the cast was a bullet. Trails of what looked like static electricity ran through the cast in a web like pattern with the bullet as the starting point, the center.
Lilly's mouth dropped open. That bullet would have killed her. The soft cloth cast had somehow stopped a bullet. If she hadn't been wearing the cast, and hadn't had her arm tucked against her chest in exactly the right way at exactly the right moment, that bullet would have killed her. She would have died like Jack, gasping for breath in pain. It would have been her eyes that turned dark. The vision of Jack's horrific death dance before her eyes. Leaning with her back against the wall, she squeezed her eyes shut, pushing the memory away. She couldn't think about this now. Focus. Focus. Focus.
"I wish I was home." Lilly clenched her jaw and slid down the wall to sit on the floor. She used her jacket to cover her face. It became her shield against the world around her.
What do I do? Honestly, before she'd seen the aliens in person, she hadn't cared about any of them dying. And with as frightening as things had gotten, part of her just wanted to leave. She wanted to be safe. But she couldn't get home. She couldn't jump back to this dimension's Earth either without the vortex manipulator. She couldn't get back into the Tardis where it was safe without a key. She couldn't even warn the Doctor ahead of time now. By the time the Doctor made it back to the main room, he would already know what was going on. The same people who died on the show were going to die here. Lilly shuttered. She couldn't help caring about them, especially after what she had just witnessed minutes ago. They would die. They would suffer just like Jack. She thought about the beige alien suffering on the floor. She thought about the Mox of Balhoon's chard remains. She thought about Jabe.
No. Lilly looked up, uncovering her face. I can still save Jabe. All I have to do is wait here until the Doctor and Jabe get back. I'll take her place. Lilly wasn't made of wood. She wouldn't burn like Jabe did. Lilly plucked the smashed bullet from her cast, and tossed it. The electric webbing stopped its sparkle, but an indented burn mark remained in the cast. Climbing back to her feet, the thought that Jabe would survive comforted Lilly. It gave her something good to focus on. She tied her jacket around her waste, and walked back into the main room. Maybe she could still do more. If Lilly could find Jack again, he could help evacuate everyone. It was his party after all.
Lilly began looking around the room. It didn't feel as busy or overwhelming as before, but she couldn't see the Face of Boe anywhere. She saw Rose and Cassandra visiting near the giant window. Rose did not look happy. She was frowning at Cassandra.
Lilly remembered what the Face of Boe had said when they first met. He'd said she could even convince Cassandra not to kill everyone. Lilly's heart soared. Had Jack been trying to tell her what to do? Maybe no one else had to die today. Maybe she could convince Cassandra her plans wouldn't work. Without thinking Lilly quickly pressed her way towards the last human. She had an idea.
"...not human. You've had it all nipped and tucked and flattened until there's nothing left." Lilly heard Rose as she approached. Oh, this wasn't good. What if Lilly's presence somehow changed what Cassandra did to Rose? Rose could die. Lilly grimaced for a moment and hesitated. Could she risk it? She heard the sound of some alien child asking his daddy for a treat from the desert table in the background. With so many families on board, how could she not risk it? She couldn't stand by and watch them burn. Maybe she could trick Cassandra into forgetting about her revenge against Rose too. "Anything human got chucked in the bin. You're just skin, Cassandra. Lipsti..."
"Oh, please don't mind Rose," Lilly interrupted. She nervously stepped forward. Could she really do this? Could she play this part?
Lilly stared at the last human. It was like looking at a living sheet of paper. With every beat of Cassandra's heart (wherever that was located), she could see her blood pulse through her veins. She was completely smooth except for the tiny wrinkles around her eyes and mouth. She smelled like an old person's house, moth balls and body odor. And when she spoke, the sound came from underneath her, instead of from her mouth. No voice box, thought Lilly. Again, the show didn't do this reality justice. Cassandra felt truly alien. Lilly swallowed down her trepidation, clenched her jaw, and focused on what she planned to do.
"She's just jealous. Wouldn't know a real human, if her life depended on it." Lilly gave Rose a look, pleading with her to understand. Rose looked back at Lilly in surprise. What's going on? wondered Rose.
"Didn't the Doctor tell you not to start a fight?" Lilly asked her, trying to give her a hint. Rose was shocked. How did she know that? thought Rose. She wasn't even th... Fortune telling. She's fortune telling. Turning back to Cassandra, Lilly continued. "She does have a bit of a chin. Doesn't she?"
"I'm sorry. What?!" Rose was surprised.
"That's what I said," stated Cassandra. "Moisturize me. Moisturize me."
"You know, she's not worth getting upset with," Lilly's hands trembled. She felt like she did when she had to get up in front of a large crowd to give a speech. But if she messed up this act, people would die. Think about it later, Lilly told herself. She reached down and rubbed her hands together, hiding her fear. Rose glanced at Lilly's hands, and then back to her face. "Not fifteen minutes ago, she was even mistaken for a prostitute," Lilly spat out the insult. Rose's mouth dropped open.
"I can't believe you said that." Rose gave Lilly a look of shock and embarrassment. She immediately felt guilty. Hurting Rose was the last thing she'd wanted to do. Maybe she was making a mistake. Maybe she should just take Rose aside, and tell her what was going on. If Rose stayed in the main room, Cassandra's men couldn't hurt her. Right? She would be safe.
In the few hours Lilly had known the Doctor, she had compromised her morals. She'd become a liar. And now she'd become cruel. She knew she was hurting Rose. But she couldn't stop. Rose wasn't the only one Lilly was trying to save. If she was going to try to convince Cassandra not to kill everyone, she had to do it now. She didn't have time to explain what was going on to Rose. She would just have to apologize later, and hope Rose understood.
"I don't have to listen to this," Rose said, looking Lilly in the eyes. Cassandra giggled as Rose walked away. Lilly shifted her weight nervously.
"Oh, that was marvelous," said Cassandra. "Did you see the look on that chav's face?" Lilly pressed her lips together, and forced a smile.
"Like I said," Lilly added, "She's not worth it." Lilly pulled her eyes off of Rose just before she disappeared into the crowd. "I'm Lilly, by the way. Lilly Brooks. And I have some information you may benefit from."
"Oh, I'm all ears." Cassandras scratchy voice grated on Lilly's guilt.
"I know what you're planning to do to Platform One."
"What? Moisturize me. Moisturize me."
"I know about the sabotage and taking hostages and the teleport hidden in the giant egg." Cassandra's eyes widened.
"I have no idea what you're talking about!"
"I also know it won't work. I can help you Cassandra."
"What do you mean?" She carried the last syllable of her sentence out, and cautiously listened. O.K. thought Lilly, Here we go.
"I can see the future. I'm a... a psychic." Lilly used Jack's word. The stress in her back and shoulders tightened with the lie. "If you go through with what you're planning, you'll die. Well, dry out and explode."
"I don't believe a word." Cassandra was short, but she didn't try to leave. "My clones would never let me dry out."
"You get separated from them." Lilly paused. "How else could I possibly know about your planned sabotage, if I wasn't psychic." She waited for Cassandra to respond, but she said nothing. What if this doesn't work? worried Lilly. Did she misunderstand Jack's meaning? Was she completely wrong about him trying to tell her what to do? Did they not believe in psychics in the future?
"Look. I'll prove to you I know what I'm talking about." Lilly remembered the film Rose had seen on New Earth just before Cassandra possessed her. "There was this party you went to... years ago." Lilly closed her eyes, pretending to be psychic. "You were blond. You wore a beautiful silver dress. And... and there was this man. This funny looking man. He came up to you and told you you were beautiful. You said thank you, but he stopped you and told you again. Then he died in your arms." Lilly opened her eyes, and looked at Cassandra. "That was the last time anyone told you you were beautiful. After that it just became hard work." Lilly quoted the show. "I am psychic. I can see through time. And I'm warning you. If you continue with your hostage plan, you will die."
A tear formed in the corner of Cassandra's eye, and her servant quickly dabbed it with a handkerchief. Lilly was surprised. She believes me! The anger she'd felt towards this woman softened a bit. She could see her loneliness. This woman just wanted to be loved and cherished. And the only way she could feel important was to be mutilated into what the current society said was beautiful. What an empty life, Lilly grieved for her. "Let me help you, Cassandra." Cassandra cleared her throat.
"Oh, you want to help. Do you?" Cassandra paused. Her acidic personality was back. "I suppose you want a portion of the profit too."
"No, Cassa..."
"I suppose I could cut you in for thirty percent. Provided you keep your mouth shut. You know, on second thought, with that gift of yours we could make trillions together."
"Cassan..."
"Forget a hostage crisis. I have a few business deals that could make me... uh, us a lot more money than this little venture. What do you think? How about we talk after the party?"
"Uh...O.K." Lilly was stunned. Had that actually worked? Was Cassandra going to stop the sabotage? One of the clones leaned down to whisper something to Cassandra. No way, thought Lilly suspiciously. She's up to something.
"Oh, you'll have to excuse me. The Earl of Rab wishes to meet me." Cassandra smiled. "My public awaits," she added dramatically. Cassandra turned to leave.
"Cassandra," Lilly called after her. She turned back, and Lilly stepped closer. "Promise me. Forget the sabotage. No one gets hurt. And you'll have a deal. Thirty percent. And I will make you more money than you can spend," she lied. If money was Cassandra's motivation, then that's the motivation Lilly would provide. The Doctor could fix this once she had explained everything to him.
"Agreed," said Cassandra. She turned and rolled away. Lilly smiled and let out a silent breath in relief. She watched Cassandra disappear into the crowd. Her 'speech' was over. Lilly breathed a little easier, and hoped. She reached down, and absentmindedly rubbed where the bullet had hit her arm. All she could do now was wait.
"Earth death in ten minutes," the computer announced. Lilly stood up taller, and looked towards the entrance. Where was the Doctor? Cassandra rolled to the center of the room.
"The planet's end," announced Cassandra dramatically. "Come gather. Come gather. Bid farewell to the cradle of civilization. Let us morn her with a traditional ballad." The juke box began to play 'Toxic' just like it did on the episode.
Lilly looked nervously at the doorway. Where was the Doctor? What was keeping him? Jabe walked in holding one of the metal spiders. The Doctor wasn't with her. Was that right? Didn't the Doctor and Jabe come in together to confront Cassandra? Lilly quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out her ipod. With a few quick swipes of her finger, she pulled up the 'End of the World' episode, and skipped ahead to find where they were now.
"May I have everyone's attention?" Jabe called in a loud voice. Lilly looked around the room. There were fewer guests in the main room now. Almost all of the families had moved to the private viewing rooms. "ATTENTION EVERYONE," Jabe tried again. The music stopped, and the room quieted for her. "Thank you. I'm afraid I have some unsettling news. This station is currently being sabotaged. We're all in danger." She held up the metal spider and scanned it with her hand held computer.
Lilly found the right scene on her ipod. She watched the Doctor and Jabe discover the spider in the room with the giant fans.
"The metal mind says it is a reprogrammed repair drone." Jabe punched some buttons on her hand held device.
Lilly continued watching the episode with growing apprehension. Where was the Doctor?! Could her presence, and what she had done, have gotten the Doctor hurt or detained or... or kil.. No. No, she wouldn't even think it. She focused on her ipod, ignoring Jabe. She watched as the Doctor ran off to save Rose from the descending sun filter. He had run full speed to the viewing room where Rose was about to be roasted, and Jabe wasn't with him. Lilly sighed in relief.
Oh, thank goodness
. It was alright. Jabe and the Doctor had separated after finding the steward. This scene playing out in front of Lilly in the main room just wasn't shown in the episode. She looked up at Jabe with interest. She saw the Face of Boe glide into the room. She still didn't see the Doctor.
And if the Doctor wasn't here, that would mean... He was busy saving Rose from the sun filter malfunction. Cassandra had still gone after her! Everything Lilly said to distract Cassandra from Rose, everything she said that hurt Rose, was for nothing. Lilly frowned. She'd made a mistake. She put her ipod back in her pocket. And with a growing sense of dread, she began making her way to the doorway where the Doctor should enter the room.
"The metal machine confirms. The spider devices have infiltrated the whole of Platform One," Jabe announced. The room was filled with gasps. Lilly pressed her way through a group of the Face of Boe's men. They reached out and caressed her.
"Get off," she said angrily. "Dirty orange men."
Lilly's face lit up when she saw the Doctor enter the room. He looked serious, and walked with purpose towards Jabe.
"How's that possible?" asked Cassandra innocently. Lilly grimaced. "Our private rooms are protected by a code wall," Cassandra went on. Lilly's frown deepened. Cassandra's deceitful words only served to convince Lilly more she intended to continue with her plans. Nothing Lilly had done had changed anything. Everyone who died on the show was going to die in reality. She looked around the room at all the people. It wasn't fair. Well, she could still save Jabe. The Doctor took the spider from the graceful alien tree, and took a few steps away.
"Summon the steward," ordered the Mox of Balhoon. Lilly reached the Doctor. He looked at her.
"Where have you been?" he asked her quietly as he took out his sonic screwdriver and began working on the spider. Lilly wasn't quite prepared for his serious attitude directed towards her. She paused.
"Busy. How's Rose?" she asked. "Is she alright?" The Doctor glanced up at her.
"How do you mean," he asked. "Why wouldn't she be alright?" A stab of fear coursed through Lilly, and the Doctor saw it. If the Doctor didn't know that Rose was alright, then he didn't just come from saving her. Lilly studied the people around the room. From this angle she could see everyone clearly. There was the Mox of Balhoon. She could see the Face of Boe. She could see Cassandra. She could see almost every alien group. But there was no Rose. She was missing.
"Didn't you just save her from a descending sun filter?" Lilly asked turning back to the Doctor. His face turned ashen.
"That was her?" he asked. "Rose was in there?!" Lilly let out a quiet gasp, and covered her mouth with her hand. Had she just killed Rose?! Had Lilly's interference in the time line changed events enough to cause Rose's death. Her eyes filled with tears as her heart plummeted into her stomach. If Rose was alright, she would be here. She wasn't here. Which meant she wasn't alright. She was dead. For some reason the Doctor hadn't saved her. Lilly knew it. Rose Tyler had died today. She'd burned to death alone in an alien room five billion years from home. And it was Lilly's fault.
"No!" choked out Lilly, "Not Rose." The Doctor's face became darker. He clenched his jaw tightly. Lilly turned back to see Cassandra. "It's all my fault. I didn't mean for Rose to get hurt," she whispered quietly to herself. A puzzled look crossed his face when Lilly's private comment reached his ears.
"I'm afraid the steward is dead," announced Jabe. Gasps flooded the room.
"Do you know anything about this?" the Doctor asked Lilly quietly.
"Everything," answered Lilly, swallowing back her tears, and ignoring the other conversation in the room. She pushed her grief to the back of her mind as well. She would think about Rose later. She focused on explaining things to the Doctor. "This is all..."
"As few words as possible," reminded the Doctor gently.
"Look, I don't have to worry about paradoxes," Lilly tried to explain to the Doctor quietly. "I know I'm from another universe, and this is..."
"...all a T.V. show?" cut in the Doctor. He frowned at Lilly when she didn't correct him. "Right then. Just shut up a minute. We'll talk about this later." The Doctor side stepped Lilly, moving towards the center of the crowd. Lilly frowned. The Doctor was right. There really wasn't enough time for her to explain everything to him. And nothing she could say to him now could change events. So, at this point, it didn't matter if he listened to her or not. She followed after the Doctor to the center of the room, fighting to keep her grief over Rose pushed aside.
"Easy way of finding out," the Doctor got everyone's attention. "Someone brought their little pet on board." He lifted the mechanical spider for everyone to see. "Let's send him back to master." The Doctor placed the spider on the ground. Lilly came to stand next to him. She shivered when she saw the spider begin to crawl across the floor, and rubbed imaginary shanoids off of her body. The Doctor glanced at her.
Everyone watched the little robot crawl over to Cassandra. The last human glared at the robot, and then stared directly at Lilly. The Doctor followed her gaze. He looked concerned at Lilly for a long moment before turning his attention back to the piece of technology moving away from Cassandra. Lilly watched the scene play out just as it had on the show until the Doctor confronted the Repeated Meme.
"That's all very well, and really kind of obvious. But if you stop and think about it, the Repeated Meme is just an idea," the Doctor explained. One of the Repeated Meme shot out a hand to strike the Doctor. He easily dodge the blow. But a second Repeated Meme hit the Doctor hard in the arm as the group surrounded him. He grunted with the impact, and used the momentum of the strike to swing himself around, grabbing hold of the offending limb. With more strength than Lilly had ever seen, the Doctor ripped the arm off of the Repeated Meme, and began using it as a weapon.
"And that's all they are... an idea," added the Doctor. Lilly jumped when he swung the arm diagonally down, catching one of the thugs in the side of the neck. The creature let out a robotic scream as it crashed to the floor in a sparking mess of wires and electronics. "Remote control droids," he continued. He smashed the droid who was missing his arm in the side with the dismembered limb, sending it sliding across the floor. "Nice little cover for the real troublemaker." Two droids lunged at him from opposite sides. With the kind of timing no human could muster, he moved out of their way, and slammed the droids into each other. Sparks flew, and loud popping sounds came from their bodies. They collapsed to the floor, but continued to try unsuccessfully to get up. He turned around to see one last droid coming towards him. The Doctor tossed the arm to it. It caught the limb and looked at it, momentarily puzzled. The Doctor used the distraction to slam his fist into it's chest, ripping out it's wires as if he was ripping out it's heart. The droids went dead, and the whole room let out a silent breath.
"Go on Jimbo. Go home." The Doctor scooted the spider gently with his foot.
Lilly was stunned at what she had just seen. If the Doctor hadn't been using a calm voice during the thirty second long battle, she may have actually been a bit frightened of him. The precision in the violence he'd just used was startling. Everyone, including Lilly, stepped back when the Doctor stepped forward. The spider walked over to Cassandra.
"I bet you were the school twat and never got kissed. At arms!" Cassandra's clones aimed their moisturizing sticks at the Doctor.
"What you going to do? Moisturized me?" the Doctor said sarcastically.
"With acid. Oh, you're too late anyway. My spiders have control of the mainframe," boasted Cassandra. Lilly listened in amazement while Cassandra explained her plans of creating a hostage situation in detail to the Doctor. Bad guys actually do that?! She looked at the Doctor, and wondered why Cassandra would spill her secrets to him. Maybe she's just the type of personality that has to gloat. Maybe she thought she was safe, because no one could stop her.
"Five billion years, and it still comes down to money," accused the Doctor.
"Do you think it's cheap being like this? Flatness costs... a fortune." Lilly stepped forward.
"Cassandra, stop," ordered Lilly, angrily thinking about Rose. "You promised no one would get hurt. If you still want money..."
"Don't lie to me, Lilly. You're just angling for a new deal?" accused Cassandra, "We agreed upon thirty percent, and not a credit more. Oh, I know. You were right. The original plan didn't work. I'm so glad you warned me. And with your ability to see the future, and my connections, we would have been swimming in riches. But that's before you tried to change our arrangement." Lilly grimaced. "Oh, don't give me that look. I saw you spilling our plan to that Doctor of yours." Lilly's mouth dropped open in surprise.
"I didn't tell him a thing, Cassandra. You..."
"Arrest them. The infidels," said the Mox of Balhoon. What! thought Lilly. The Doctor was looking at Lilly, but didn't say a thing.
"Oh, shut it. Pixie. I've still got my final option," said Cassandra.
"Earth death in three minutes." The computer sounded it's warning.
"And here it comes," Cassandra continued. "You're just as useful dead. All of you. I have shares in your rival companies. Triple in price as soon as you're dead. My spider's are primed, and ready to destroy the safety systems. How did that old Earth song go? Burn, baby. Burn" Lilly clenched her fists.
"Cassandra!" She couldn't let this happen. She couldn't let everyone die like Rose... like Jack. "Stop! I'm trying to save your life. I've seen your future. If you continue with this, you'll die. There will be NO money."
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I wish I could believe you, Lilly. But after you betrayed me, I just can't risk it." Cassandra paused. "Still... maybe we can work something out," she said to herself, before continuing her speech. "I know the use of teleportation is strictly forbidden. But I'm such a naughty thing. Spiders, activate."
Lilly squeezed her eyes shut when she heard tiny explosions throughout the station. Her lip quivered into a frown with a sinking feeling. Nothing she had done had helped. She had only made things worse.
"Forcefield's gone with the planet about to explode. At least it will be quick...just like my fifth husband. Bye, bye darlings. Bye bye..." Lilly felt the station rumble beneath her feet. When she opened her eyes, she wasn't on the station anymore.
"Moisturize me. Moisturize me." Lilly looked at Cassandra. She was surrounded by dozens of clones fawning over her. They were in a large elaborately decorated hall on board some kind of space ship. The room was well lit with balconies and stairways covering three sides of the room. There was a forty foot high viewing window like the one on Platform One on the fourth wall at the other end.
Lilly could see Platform One through the window. She could tell the shields were down. Little pieces of debris could be seen hitting the station, damaging it. She hoped the Doctor would still be able to reboot the shields in time. She knew he had only managed to get them up four seconds before Earth exploded on the show. What if my conversation with Cassandra used up those four seconds? Lilly worried. She would be stuck with Cassandra. She watched the last human regale her faithful worshipers with her tail of triumph.
Lilly turned back to look at the station. I won't be there to save Jabe, she realized. In a few minutes the lovely alien tree was going to burn to death, trying to save everyone else. Lilly frowned. Tears flushed her eyes. Everyone who died on the show, even Jabe, was dying today. It was worse than that. Rose was dead too.
Tears flowed freely, streaming down Lilly's cheeks. What had she done? The feeling in the pit of her stomach weighed her down. She wanted to run. She wanted to forget. She wanted to pretend this wasn't real. Without Rose, even if the Doctor succeeded saving the station, he would die on Satellite Five. The daleks would rule this universe, and eventually they would use their reality bomb to destroy all creation. Every dimension would cease to exist. Would the reality bomb reach Lilly's home universe? After everything she'd seen, it was a legitimate fear. Her whole family. All her friends. Her whole world. They would die. It was her fault.
Is this how the Doctor feels?
She brought her hand to her mouth to prevent a sob. Her heart ached on behalf of him. How could he possibly go on?
He never gives up
, Lilly answered her own question. I won't give up either. But what could she do? How could she possibly fix this? I'll take Rose's place, thought Lilly. I'll do everything she did on the show. Could she do that? Could she manage to be as brave as Rose? Could she care enough about another species? Aliens? Could she handle looking into the heart of the Tardis? Maybe she wouldn't be able to look into the heart of the Tardis and save the Doctor, but for the lives of her family she would die trying. The lives of everyone she knew depended on the Doctor surviving. I'll tell him everything too, she thought. No sense in being stupid about this. The only question now was whether the Doctor could save Platform One in time.
Come on, Doctor, Lilly hoped. Her tears hadn't stopped.
"Enjoying the show?" Lilly jumped when Cassandra spoke. She hadn't noticed the flap of skin standing behind her. "It won't be long now." Cassandra laughed. Lilly dried her eyes with her sleeve. She didn't want Cassandra to see her crying. The clones surrounded them.
"Cassandra," Lilly began, "Remember this moment. Remember this moment when you're living in the basement of a hospital, scavenging for scraps, watching old films, trying to recapture your past." Lilly's voice was angry. She knew her prediction would only be accurate, if the Doctor saved Platform One. "I tried to save you," she choked. "You could have had..." Lilly pressed her lips together, stifling a sob and breathing a shuttered breath. "You killed my best friend today. You killed Rose. SHE really was human, not you. Remember when you're living like a rat in that basement. Remember you got what you deserved." Cassandra's eyes widened for a moment.
"Oh, what do you know? First you say I explode from drying out. Now you tell me I'll live in squalor. Which is it?" Cassandra looked Lilly up and down. "You know, I knew from the beginning you were a fake. A charlatan trying to scam be out of thirty percent. Well, I'll let you in on a little secret. I never intended to give you a credit. Not one credit. Moisturize me Moisturize me. You're worth more on the black market than you would ever be worth as a partner. And that's where you're going, you charlatan. I'll get at least a billion for you." The sun suddenly flared. Lilly glanced at the unshielded station.
"NO!" she shouted as she stepped towards the window. The flare was too bright, and Lilly had to turn away, shielding her eyes with her arm.
"Ha!" laughed Cassandra. "You see. It worked." Panic rose up Lilly's throat. Did the Doctor get off the station in time? Did he make it to the Tardis? Was he hurt? Would he regenerate? If he'd survived, would he look like ten now? Would he survive regeneration sickness without Mickey spilling tea in the Tardis? Would ten survive under the extreme solar conditions long enough to get away? What about Jack? Would he come back from the dead? Would anyone help her get away from Cassandra? Would she be sold on the black market? What about all those families on the station? If felt like a million worries rushed through Lilly's mind all at once.
"Someone check the stock prices. I want to witness my profits soar!" Cassandra shouted. Several of the clones scurried over to a control panel in a the wall. After a few moments, a large holographic screen appeared in the center of the room. It was covered with fluctuating numbers. "Any minute now..." Cassandra grinned.
Lilly frowned. She felt completely alone, and didn't know what to do.