Beckett slipped her phone back in her pocket, for now. She would call the Doctor back when she'd found something.

Tara and Castle had been watching out for Daleks while Beckett had spoken with the Doctor, Felix sticking by her side. Now that she's hung up, they started to head back towards her. "Is there a plan?" Tara asked.

"Yes. Find something in the exhibits to stop the Daleks." Beckett picked up her gun again, feeling it shudder back to life in her hands. She started down one of the hallways, Tara, Castle, and Felix following her.

Felix raised an eyebrow, glancing at the large gun in her arms. "That seems to work rather well," he pointed out.

Beckett shook her head. "We're not killing the Daleks unless we have to," she told him firmly. "We need to find something to trap them, or maybe shut down their weapons. Something non-lethal."

Felix and Tara shared a dubious glance. Evidentially, they didn't feel hopeful about getting out of this alive without the Daleks dying. Beckett felt a brief moment of uncertainty. She had no authority here. No badge, no detectives to back her up or system to support her. If Tara or Felix decided to kill one of the Daleks, Beckett wasn't sure she could stop them.

She was brought out of her thoughts by the feeling of a warm hand around here. Castle was beside her, giving her a reassuring grin. "Well, this is a museum. A really, really cool alien museum. There's gotta be something we can use here." His grin turned smug as he added, "I told you going to the museum was a good idea."

Any uncertainty or doubts she had were instantly cleared away when she saw that dorky grin of his, and felt the warmth of his hand in hers. Beckett had her partner back. She knew he would stand by her side on this, and for now, that was more than enough.

Now that she was more confident, she threw herself into full focus, putting herself back in the mindset she took whenever she was on a case. "You're right," she said in a cool, clipped tone before glancing back at the Silurian sheriff. "Tara, you're the one who knows the museum best. Any clue where we could find what we need?"

Tara still looked a little uncertain about the plan, but she nodded with a grin. "I have some ideas," she replied.

SCENEBREAK

The sheriff led them to a wing of the museum labelled, "The Miskreeial War."

Tara explained as they entered the wing, "A few centuries ago, there was this huge war on Earth with these alien invaders, the Koorin. The humans managed to beat them back, but it took a few good years. There should be plenty of good tech from the war that we can use."

There certainly was an impressive assortment of weaponry. Guns, bombs, shattered bits and pieces of ships, vaguely weapon-ish looking things that Beckett didn't recognize, the exhibits were full of them, lining every wall. Each exhibits was labelled, but so far, none of them said anything like "non-lethal" or "tranquilizer" or anything that would suggest their purpose wasn't to kill.

"Well, the human race seems to have a knack for building things meant to kill other people," Beckett noted with distaste. She herself carried a gun as a necessary part of her job, but seeing all these new and improved ways to kill didn't exactly thrill her. She knew all too well how determined some people were to kill and hurt other humans, and seeing even more powerful tools for that end didn't fill her with a lot of hope.

Apparently, however, she was the only one thinking along those lines. Castle was staring at a particularly large, future-techy looking gun with unrestrained awe. "That thing is so cool!" he declared. The writer looked back hopefully at his girlfriend. "Can we get one?"

Beckett's amusement overshadowed her dark mood, which she suspected had been Castle's intent. "I don't think Lewart would appreciate us stealing one of his exhibits," she answered dryly.

"We're already here to take one of his exhibits," Castle pointed out. "We can just tell him the Daleks took it."

Tara and Beckett both answered with a firm, "No," at the same time.

While they were focused on Castle and his childishness, Felix's attention had been caught by a different exhibit. He'd walked towards it to get a closer look, the other three not even noticing that he wasn't beside them. As they started to walk away, Felix called out, "You think this might work?"

Beckett glanced back at Felix, heading over to see what he was looking at. Four metal discs were lying inside, with the label declaring them to be an, "Electro-pulse net."

The word "net certainly seemed promising. "How does it work?" Beckett asked.

"Apparently, when the four discs are arranged on a surface and turned on, they'll be aware of any motion around them," Felix reported. He was reading the description below the label. "If any life form walks into the area formed by the four discs, they'll activate, forming a sort of electric net that holds the life form trapped inside without killing them."

Castle and Beckett shared a surprised glance. "That sounds like exactly what we were looking for," the writer remarked.

"It's perfect," Beckett agreed. "Great job, Felix." Now they just had to hope that the discs could still work.

SCENEBREAK

The ambulance had arrived for Twi a few minutes ago. The Doctor hung back as the small alien was loaded into the ambulance, wrapped up in thought. Beckett had hung up a few minutes ago, promising to call back if she found anything. Now that the ambulance was here, they had a limited time to stop and contain the Daleks before someone realized what was going on. And even if no one at the hospital discovered what was happening at the musuem, it would be daylight in a few hours, and people would think the museum was open and start arriving. They needed to move fast.

Lewart had offered to accompany Twi to the hospital, but the injured alien had declined. The Doctor was pretty sure everyone knew Lewart would alert exactly the wrong people to the museum if left to his own devices. Fi and Ki planned to go to the hospital with Twi, while Violet and her husband had decided to stay and help. The Doctor was a little surprised by their offer, but didn't really have any reason to refuse. He was hoping Beckett and Castle would be abe to handle the Daleks at their end, but if something went wrong, he got the feeling he was going to need some help.

After the ambulance was all loaded up and had left, the screen on the machine in Tara's office received an incoming message. The Doctor pulled up the screen, fighting back a wave of revulsion when an image of a Dalek filled the screen. The creature was standing by the intercom it had used before, still outside the front of the building. It must have used the security camera recording it and somehow sent the footage to Tara's machine. "DOC-TOR," it greeted shrilly.

The Doctor forced a cold, almost feral smile. "Hello, Dalek. How can I help you?" He made no effort to hold back his bitter sarcasm.

"WHERE IS THE SHIP?" The Dalek's voice was even shriller than usual, and the eyestalk seemed to almost be trembling. And now the Doctor knew why.

"I think I've almost found one you can use," the Doctor lied smoothly. He needed the Daleks to think he was making a real effort to help them. Beckett might not be a hostage anymore, but if the Daleks got suspicious too early, she could still be in danger.

"BRING US A SHIP! NOW! NOW!" the Dalek ordered wildly.

The Doctor glared at the metal creature. "Give me more time," he snapped. "I can't just materialize a ship out of thin air. "I've almost got one. Just hold on a bit longer."

The Dalek was silent for a few moments, staring at the Doctor with a cold, emotionless blue glow. Finally, it cried, "THE DOC-TOR WILL DELIVER THE SHIP, OR HIS COM-PAN-IONS WILL DIE!" With that, the connection was severed, and the screen went blank.

The Time Lord sighed, turning away from the computor. The two remaining Daleks were clearly getting restless. If Beckett was going to do something, she would have to hurry, before the Daleks decided to act first.

SCENEBREAK

"Everything set up?" Tara asked as she approached the others.

Castle told her, "All set and ready to go." The four discs were laid out on the ground, creating a large, square-ish area between the four of them. Two of them were laid right up against the wall, and the other two left enough room between the wall and the discs for a human to fit through – but not a Dalek. "They've all been switched on. The first creature that passes through gets trapped," he added.

She grinned. "Excellent. The Daleks are still outside. They don't seem to suspect anything. Felix is still keeping an eye on them, I promised to meet him back there in a few minutes.

Beckett gave a short nod. "Alright. When you reach him, let him know it's time to get this plan moving."

"Alright," Tara replied easily. "What do you want us to do?"

"Get the Daleks' attention. You'll need them to chase you back here. But be careful. Don't take unnecsary risks. Just bring them here, and stay a reasonable distance away," Beckett instructed briskly.

"And don't get shot," Castle added helpfully.

Tara chuckled. "Will do. We'll be careful, don't worry." With that, she turned and headed back down the hallway, off to find Felix.

Beckett let out a slow breath. They were standing behind the four discs, ready to confront the Daleks when they arrived. Now that the plan was being put into motion, she knew she had to call the Doctor and let him in on the plan.

"Keep an eye out for Tara and Felix," she told Castle before pulling out her phone. She turned and walked a few paces away as she dialed the number for the station again.

It only took moments for the Doctor to pick up. "Beckett? How are things on your end?"

"Good. We think we've found a way to trap the Daleks." Beckett quickly explained their plan to the Time Lord.

"Electro-pulse net?" he inquired. "I haven't seen one of those in a few decades. They're not exactly the biggest and best tech or power-wise. Are you sure they'll hold the Daleks?"

Beckett felt a pang of concern, absently sweeping some of her hair out of her face, back behind her shoulder. "No," she admitted. "But we need to try something, and I think this is our best shot. Besides, if that doesn't work, at least they'll be standing still long enough for Plan B." The gun was lying just behind the discs, cold and dull now that it wasn't being carried. She didn't exactly relish the thought of more death, but she wouldn't hesitate to do what had to be done to protect herself and these people.

There was a sigh on the other end. "You're right. Good luck, detective."

"I'll call you when it's over," Beckett promised. She declined to add the unspoken, one way or another. She hung up, then turned back towards Castle. "Any sign of them?"

Castle shook his head. "Not yet." He glanced at her, an unusually solemn set to his expression. "I keep thinking about Alexis and my mother. If I die here, they'll never know what happened to me."

Beckett was surprised by how serious Castle's mood had become. The writer had seemed fairly cheerful through the whole ordeal, even once the Daleks became a threat. It was his way to crack jokes and keep the mood light, even through danger and the burden of solving grim cases. And with the addition of aliens and a whole new planet to explore, he'd been acting like a child on Christmas all day.

But she could understand his concerns as well. Being on a far off planet in a far away time was a gift she never could have imagined, but it came with a cost. They had left their whole world behind; if something happened to them, they could lose everything they'd ever known.

Her blood froze for a few moments at the thought of her dying and her father never learning the truth of what had happened to her. Would he think she'd been murdered on the streets, like her mother? Would he turn to drink again? And he wasn't her only family anymore. Martha and Alexis meant so much to her, they had been family for longer than she'd been willing to admit. The thought of them grieving for her and Castle, left with no answers or closure, terrified her.

The detective shook her head once sharply, to clear her thoughts. She smiled at Castle, reaching out to grab his hand. Her fingers entertained with his as she told him, "I know. It scares me too. But we're both getting out of this alive." She gave her boyfriend's hand a squeeze, with her voice full of confidence. "We're going to beat the Daleks, then we're going back to New York and back to Alexis and Martha, and Ryan and Espo, and Lanie."

"At this point, I think I'd be glad to see Gates again," Castle joked.

Beckett's eyebrows flew up at the thought of Castle being happy to see the captain. That, if nothing else, demonstrated how homesick he was. But she supposed she couldn't blame him. Visiting Swametel had been amazing, and she would always be grateful for having the chance to take that one trip. But it had also taught her, more clearly than ever, that her home was New York. She belonged there, in the city, on Earth, not in the TARDIS traveling the universe. She had a family back there, a job and a calling that needed her. As amazing as their day had been, she knew she could never live her life this way.

Castle gave her a grateful smile, the dark concern fading from his expression. After a few moments, amusement sparked in his eyes. "You know, Epsosito and Ryan are going to kill us when they find out we went on a trip in time and space without them," he joked.

Beckett chuckled. "Yeah, I bet they would." There was a pause. Both of their expressions faded from amusement to faint horror as they realized just how true Beckett's words were. She and Castle shared a mildly panicked glance. "We never speak of this to them," she said firmly.

"Agreed," Castle replied quickly.

Before either of them could say anything else, there was the distant sound of shooting. Castle and Beckett both froze. The blasts started to sound closer and closer. There was a call from the distance; "We've got Daleks!" It was Felix's voice, and not too far away either. They were almost there.

Beckett and Castle seperated. The detective leaned down and grabbed the gun, feeling it warm up in her arms. Time to end this, one way or another.


Oh man, I'm so sorry how long this took to update. See, first I was busy working, then I was busy moving into college again for the new semester, then I was sick, then I was at Figure Skating Nationals. So yeah, here, finally, is the new chapter. And it's not even 3000 words. -_- Ah well, I hope you enjoy it.

I had fun with that Beckett and Castle conversation. I love seeing those two interact, and they're fun to write. Beckett's definitely a strong, confident female character like Molly, but they're definitely different too. It's nice writing for her.

Oh yeah, and did I mention I went to watch Figure Skating Nationals? Because I did. And I saw amazing skating. And I met people and took pictures.

I would like to link to said pictures at this time, but this website tends to be an absolute pain about posting outside links. :/ So if you wanna see them, go on Google and search "Grizabella189 Photobucket" (that's my account) and it should come up, and find my folder labeled "Figure Skating Nationals." I should have all the photos uploaded by tomorrow.