Giannes, 3019 A.D.

"But then... then I heard something that stopped me in my tracks. I heard Isabelle say to Jonas, 'We'll all be much better off once we've done away with the lot of Gen 1. It's the only way to keep their damn mouths shut about everything.'" Leola uttered a nervous chuckle of disbelief. "I thought she must be joking at first. Or that I misheard. But then Jonas replied. 'It's not like there's room for all of us anyway. This ship was never intended to house two generations long term. And don't get me started on the shortage of supplies.'"

River shook her head, seriously wishing she could get her hands on a good strong drink. She had skipped ahead to some of Leola's later entries while she waited for the vortex manipulator to finish charging. Events had taken a decidedly disturbing turn.

Leola's voice now angry. "Of course Rhett says I must be mistaken. That they were only havin a laugh." She scoffed. "He doesn't believe me about anything at all though does he? He sure as shit didn't believe me when I told him what that bastard Coordinator did to me last year in the canteen. I feel I don't even know him anymore." The woman's contempt for her husband was palpable. "But this. I must find someone to believe me. Because I'm frightened."

The recording ended and that was it. Leola Jae Barber's very last recorded words. And that was when River knew for sure that she had a new mission. She sat forward in the captain's seat of Penumbra and stared unseeing at the digital chronicle device in her hands.

Her Time Lord instincts told her she couldn't interfere with Leola's story, particularly now that it had been set in stone for her by listening to it. Paradox loop and all that. (If she went back and fixed things in 2046 and these recordings weren't there for her to find in 3019, she would have never known to go back and fix things.)

But Leola had given birth to two beloved daughters on board Aquarius Epta. Cadence Jae and Haven Lane. And they seemed to be the only thing that brought joy back to Leola's miserable life. River had little doubt that those bastards murdered every single member of Gen 1 and left those girls defenseless with no protector. Nobody to watch out for them at all.

Well River would just have to see what she could do about that.

She took a deep breath and shook off the feeling of helplessness that seemed to weigh on her when she listened to Leola's recordings. It was too late for Leola unfortunately, but there might be some way that River could still intervene on Leola's daughters' behalf.

When she checked the vortex manipulator once more, she was pleased to see it was fully charged and ready to go. Now she'd need to plan her next move.

She knew she'd be foolish to go check out the planet Felix without any kind of back up. A single person- even a person like River- would be no match for an entire race of hostile lifeforms.

And so River considered what point in the timeline would be most ideal. She didn't want to wage a war on board the ship. She couldn't very well pull the girls out of there... River's eyes narrowed. Or could she?

Most of those old passenger starships had at least one or two tiny skiff ships on board that were there for short excursions- and as potential life boats in case of a disaster. And she really couldn't think of a better reason for a lifeboat than to rescue Leola's daughters from that horrible slave ship.

If River could go back to when the girls were small, perhaps she could take them away and find them a family somewhere in this great big galaxy.

River knew she was playing with fire. She also knew what the Doctor would say. But River was set on her course. She was determined to find some way to help Cadence and Haven, all because she felt a strange kinship with their mother, whom she'd never even met.

There was something about Leola Barber and her sad story. Especially her tragic relationship with her husband. In the end, she'd despised Rhett for steering her toward her ultimate fate. She despised herself for letting him. But she also still loved him somehow. She still wanted his attention even if she also still wanted to hurt him.

In one of her later journal entries, Leola had said, "I don't know why I still care the way I do. I shouldn't. But it turns out that my love for him is poison that lives in my veins. I can't shake it, I can't let it go. And I can't love him enough to make him be the man I need him to be. And I can't hurt him enough. Not in a million years could I ever hurt him enough to make him know my pain."

It all hit pretty close to home for River, (with some obvious differences), and so she made a promise to a dead stranger. And she intended to keep that promise.

River stood and put her sidepack on once more. She strapped on the vortex manipulator before taking one last look around the cockpit of Penumbra. She sighed. There was nothing she could do for the people they'd lost here. But there was still something River could do.

She flipped up the cover on the device and programmed it to take her where she wished to go. Now she had to choose when. It would have to be sometime between 2047 after Leola was gone and before 2080 when they were set to land on Giannes.

She set the coordinates, then entered the year 2047. She'd find those two girls before anyone had a chance to harm them and shape them. River flinched, her mind flashing back to Madame Kovarian for a moment. Then she hit the actuate button on the device and let the discharge of artron energy knock those memories right out of her mind.

River found herself zapped into a dark room. She quickly dug in her side pack for a torch and took a look around. It was some sort of storage facility, she was assuming on board Aquarius Epta. It took a moment before she began to suspect this must be the very storage room she'd searched back on Giannes. It wasn't that it looked the same though. It was that haunted feeling, back with her once more.

River squinted into the darkness. The feeling this room gave her. She shuddered. Strange, but River suddenly had the idea that maybe the TARDIS was calling to her through time and space. Perhaps, warning her of something? Had the Doctor been here on board this ship? In this very room?

River shook her head. Ridiculous. If the Doctor had been here, none of this would have happened.

She headed for the double doors at the far end of the room. She needed to quit procrastinating and try to locate those girls.

Just as she neared the doors, they slip open, seemingly of their own accord. River automatically turned off her torch, stepped back into the shadows, and kept still.

A brunette woman of around thirty walked into the room carrying a basket and pressed the light switch button on the wall. The lights flickered, then immediately went out.

"Sonofabitch." the woman muttered. "Why do I always get sent on supply runs." She clicked on her flashlight and made her way across to some shelves.

Was this one of those awful Coordinator people Leola had spoken of? It suddenly occurred to River that it might not be a bad idea to use this woman to help her find the girls. Here she was, by herself, separated from the rest of the crew. River touched the energy weapon in her pocket.

The woman was looking the shelves over, selecting items and placing them in her basket. River wondered if this was one of those cruel bitches who had made Leola's life such hell. Her eyes narrowed.

Her voice startled the woman when she said coldly, "Did you know Leola Barber?"

The brunette dropped the basket and all of its contents on to the floor. She aimed her torch with shaking hands in River's direction. "Who's there?"

River leaned against the wall, fidgeting with her energy weapon. She squinted up at the torchlight shining in her eyes and offered a smug smile. "The name's River. River Song. And I believe I asked you a question first."

The brunette was still shaking a bit when she answered. "Leola was my mother. Of course I know who she was. What do you want with me?"

A mixture of anger and confusion washed over River. No. This couldn't be right. She had programmed the damn thing for 2047...

She cleared her throat and tried to make her voice normal. "What year is this?" she insisted.

The brunette woman blinked. "Um... Well, it's two thousand eighty. Why are you askin me all these mad questions?" She was edging back toward the doors, obviously uncertain of how safe she was alone with this crazy woman who didn't even know what year it was.

2080. River's eyes closed. What had happened? Blasted vortex manipulator. They were usually quite accurate.

She sighed and studied the young woman in the beam of her torch. She was quite beautiful but River could see that she was also quite damaged. She was too late. And now that she'd met her, she couldn't go back any earlier. "What your name?" she asked kindly. "Please don't be frightened. I've come to help."

The young woman took a step toward River, a bit intrigued. "I'm Haven." she answered. "And what makes you think I need any help?"

"Haven Sweetie. Not everything is as it seems." She hesitated for a moment, but then it became clear what she'd have to do. "I have something for you." River reached into her pocket for Leola's digital chronicle.


The TARDIS, Giannes, 2080 A.D.

"So where specifically did this River woman say she would meet up with you?" The Doctor asked Haven.

Haven shrugged. "She said she'd find me."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "No specified meeting place? She'll just find you?" The Doctor made a sound of exasperation. "Pardon me for saying, but that seems a bit unlikely. There's an entire planet out there."

Haven replied patiently, as if she were dealing with someone who was a bit slow. "I'm not sure how she intends to do so, but she managed to find me on board a ship of thousands of passengers just fine." Haven's faith in River Song seemed every bit as strong as his doubts.

"Tell me Haven. Where exactly were you on the ship when she found you?" the Doctor inquired, chewing at his thumb thoughtfully.

She chuckled. "Didn't I mention? In that same damn store room."

The Doctor blinked. "Interesting..." he murmured, turning away. The Doctor's eyes narrowed. He was growing quite troubled by what he'd heard about this strange woman so far. What was she exactly? A Time Agent? She couldn't be a Time Lord. Could she...?

He looked once again at the picture of perfect darkness on the scanner. The TARDIS had brought them to the night side of the planet and the Doctor assumed there must be a reason for that. They were currently waiting for Turlough and Cadence to get dressed and ready and they'd go out and explore a bit. There were still about 9 hours until Aquarius Epta was set to land on Giannes. They could at least get a lay of the land and formulate a plan ahead of time.

"Alright you two. Are we ready to go take a look at the planet?" Cadence was excited, which was only understandable since she'd spent her entire life on a ship traveling through space. She'd never set foot on a single planet.

The Doctor thought Haven looked more nervous than excited, though she put on a brave face for her sister. "I'm ready!" she declared with false enthusiasm. She kept looking toward the entrance to the corridor, waiting for Turlough to appear.

Finally the red head came bounding through into the console room. "I've brought torches for everyone." he stated, holding them up. He began to pass them out. The Doctor noticed that he seemed reluctant to meet Haven's eyes when he passed a flashlight to her.

The Doctor had already done environment and atmospheric checks so all four were prepared with warm coats and eye protection.

He placed his hat on top of his head and opened the TARDIS doors. "Shall we then?" he asked, gesturing toward the outside.

He led the way out into the darkness. The wind was cold and quite brutal and he lost his hat almost immediately. He sighed and scanned the horizon. "Alright Old Girl. I do hope there's a legitimate reason that you've brought us to this side of Giannes." he muttered under his breath. And that's when he spotted it: the huge compound built into a cliff face right beside an opening to a mine. "Bingo." he whispered.

"Whoa. What is it?" Cadence asked, wide-eyed.

"What's that tunnel there?" Haven asked nervously.

"It's a mine." Turlough explained, stepping closer to her, in an almost protective gesture. "My guess is, it's the source of that mineral, Giannesite."

"But what's with that big building?" Cadence marveled.

They began walking toward it. "It appears to be an operations facility for the mine." the Doctor replied darkly. He believed they'd stumbled upon the destination for Aquarius Epta and the intended new home for all the passengers.

They trudged along in silence, the Doctor disgusted with the whole scenario. There had to be something they could do to help all these people.

He led them up some stone stairs, in through the front door. He was surprised to find the electricity working when he tried the light switch. The facility was a bit dusty but in amazingly good shape otherwise.

"Do you suppose there are already people here?" Turlough asked in a low voice as he tucked his torch into a pocket of his coat. His suspicious eyes slid around the reception area they were standing in.

Tasteful framed pictures hung on the walls. The reception desk was solid wood and there were a few chairs against one wall for waiting people to sit. There were even a few fake potted plants for decoration.

"One of the documents in the project files spoke of an advance team preparing the mine for the ship's arrival." The Doctor whispered back. "I suppose they would be in this facility."

They made their way through the well lit reception area, further into the building. They were headed into the part of the compound that was built into the side of the mountain.

"If there are people here, they must be used to this cold." Haven murmured , rubbing at her arms in an attempt to keep warm. "You would think if they had power, they'd find a way to better heat this place."

The Doctor had been thinking the very same thing. They walked through a series of barracks style sleeping quarters into an administration wing of the building.

On one wall, the Doctor noticed an environmental control thermostat. The heat was turned to off. His eyes narrowed and he flipped the switch to on.

"These desks are all empty." Turlough pointed out, walking around the office space. "There's not a computer or a pencil. Not a coat or a coffee." He scratched his head.

"Look here!" Cadence called from the back of the administrative section. "Where the important people are meant to sleep." She muttered dryly.

They walked back into the hallway where Cadence was standing and began to check each of the rooms off the hallway. More like hotel rooms than communal sleeping quarters here.

There was nobody. Nothing.

"Am I the only one who finds it slightly disconcerting that there are no personal belongings anywhere?" Turlough insisted. "I haven't seen so much as a pair of socks in any of these rooms."

"Maybe you misread the files." Haven suggested, shaking her head. "There's clearly nobody here yet."

The Doctor had found a door leading out into the mine. "Well we haven't checked everywhere yet, now have we?" he grinned at Haven and turned his flashlight back on before heading down into the darkness.


Aquarius Epta Project Mining Operations, Giannes, 2080 A.D.

Haven sighed and threw her hands up in exasperation. "Is he out of his bloody mind? It's obvious nobody is here."

Turlough chuckled. "When traveling with the Doctor, you learn to leave no stone unturned. No matter what might scurry out."

Haven shuddered at his words and he must've noticed because he placed a hand comfortingly on the back of her neck, guiding her toward the door. "Come on. I'll be right beside you. Everything will be fine."

She had been freezing cold until he touched her. Now she could feel warmth spread throughout her body. She was too flustered to speak so she just nodded. She pretended not to notice how her sister was side-eyeing her, clearly amused.

Cadence was the first to follow the Doctor down the stairs into the mine.

Haven took a deep breath and remarked flippantly. "I suppose I'd better get used to it. Since I'm apparently meant to be a miner."

Turlough gave her a serious look. "Not if I have anything to do with it." he told her firmly.

She turned and headed through the door before he could see the pleased smile that spread across her face.

"Wow." Haven exclaimed when she reached the bottom of the stone steps. Turlough was right behind her down the stairs. She shone her torch all around her, marveling at the sparkling blue in the rock. "It's beautiful." she breathed.

"Quite." the Doctor murmured from a few meters away. He was right up close to the wall, shining his torch on the surface and peering closely.

Suddenly a bright flash of energy seemed to engulf him and he fell against the wall, dropping his torch in surprise.

"What the hell?" Cadence shouted, running over to see if he was alright.

"Uh Doctor... there is most definitely someone else here." Turlough grabbed Haven by the hand and was backing quickly away from the dark cave that led deeper into the mine.

Haven screamed out loud when she saw what he was looking at. A tall robot-looking man was approaching fast, brandishing some type of weapon. A weapon it had apparently already shot at the Doctor.

"Everyone run!" the Doctor shouted, grabbing Cadence by the arm and heading toward the outside entrance to the tunnel. They turned a corner just in time to avoid another shot fired by the robot.

Turlough was pulling Haven along and she thought her lungs were going to burst they were running so fast. Suddenly there was a strange electrical zap behind them, followed by another loud energy discharge and a clank. The footfalls of the robot man stopped and were replaced by a weird mechanical murmur.

Haven couldn't resist looking back. She gasped. The robot man was missing its head and after a moment, it toppled over to the ground. She dragged her feet to put on the brakes. "Stop!" she instructed Turlough.

She turned and shone her flashlight around. What she saw there caused a huge grin to spread across her face. "River!" she shouted with excitement.

The woman with the wild curly hair was holding the very same weapon she'd been carrying in the supply room a few weeks ago. In fact, she appeared to be wearing the exact same clothes. She looked aggravated.

"You're early!" River scolded. "Your ship isn't due in for several more hours."

Turlough had walked back to join Haven and was regarding River curiously.

"Y-y-yes well..." Haven tried to explain.

"She caught the express." Turlough provided sarcastically. He pointed to the robot she'd mangled with her weapon. "What was that thing?"

River approached them, studying the young man. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced."

Her voice was cold and it was apparent from her grip on the weapon that she hadn't ruled out using it on him.

"Turlough is a good guy." Haven explained quickly, clasping his hand to prove it.

River stopped short. "I'm sorry." she blinked. "Did you just say Turlough?"

Turlough sighed. "Yes. My name is Vislor Turlough. I'm a traveler and I'm here to help. Now are you going to tell me what that thing was?"

River was still staring at him oddly but she did answer his question. "It's called a Protector. They're androids created to protect the minerals."

Turlough blinked. "Protect them from who?"

River smirked and finally holstered her gun. "From humans of course." She glanced back behind her. "Now, might I suggest we make our way out of here? They don't usually attack alone."

They had very nearly reached the entrance when they met the Doctor headed back in to check on them.

"Are you alright?" Haven asked him, running over to check. "Did it shoot you?"

"I seem to be fine." he murmured, his attention clearly caught by the stranger that had joined them in the mine.

The stranger who had stopped short and was now staring at the Doctor as if she'd seen a ghost.

"And you must be the infamous River Song." the Doctor guessed, his arms crossed in front of him.