"Bomb?" the Doctor asked as he removed the Chameleon Arch from his head. "What kind of bomb?"

"You've heard of an Oblivion Continuum?"

"Yes, of course!" the Doctor said irritably as he jumped off the table. "You have to tell me, River, I have to know. Was he a future incarnation?"

"Yes."

The Doctor's face lit up with a smile. "I thought so. He was wearing a bow tie!" The Doctor chuckled. "You'll have to tell me all about him after we disarm that bomb?"

"I will. So, what do we do now?"

"All right, all right," the Doctor said. "Did I tell you its location?"

"Yes. He, you…he believes one of Father Octavian's clerics is carrying it."

The Doctor nodded. "The unfortunate young man we found earlier…then let's get to Father Octavian before that bomb explodes, shall we?" the Doctor said as he rushed out of the room with River following at his heels.

David knelt beside Father Octavian's cot, silently praying with his eyes closed. Father Octavian watched over David as the bomb on the young priest's chest continued to charge toward detonation. As he observed the young man kneeling beside his cot, the Bishop realized he knew very little about the cleric. Since they only had a few minutes left before they would both be dead, maybe he could bring the young priest a little comfort if the young man shared memories of something special about his past.

"David, I've been your commanding officer for over a year now and I haven't had the opportunity to really get to know you," Father Octavian said. "I realize this is the strangest time to ask this, but would you mind telling me something about your past that I don't know about?"

David smiled. "Not much to tell, Sir. You already know I was orphaned at 10, and I was sent to an orphanage and then I joined the order when I was 18."

"Surely there's been more to your life than that. Did you ever have a sweetheart?"

David chuckled. "Yes, several actually…that was before I joined the order."

Father Octavian smiled. "Of course. But, was there ever a special girl in your life?"

"Yes, Sir. There was a very special girl in my life, once. Her name was Socorro."

"Socorro. What a beautiful name."

"Yes, Sir. She was as beautiful as her name too," David said, smiling. "Sir, I'm not joking, she looked like an angel. She had long, curly red hair that went all the way down to her waist, huge blue eyes and a smile that lit up a room. She was like a shiny new penny in the sunlight. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her. Socorro was a bright light in a really dark time in my life."

As David spoke about the love of his life, Father Octavian noticed the Oblivion Continuum's programming was being interrupted. The lights on the bomb's exterior were switching off, one by one.

"What happened? Why didn't you marry her?"

David shrugged as a sad look crossed his face. "Her father didn't approve of me. He said I wasn't good enough for her. He sent her away and she married someone else, an influential man. But, last I heard, he left her for someone else. He broke her heart."

Suddenly, the lights on the bomb's surface were being activated once again as David spoke of his feelings of worthlessness. Father Octavian realized the bomb was somehow connected to David's emotions.

"David, we're going to get out of this and when we do, you must find Socorro," Father Octavian said.

"Sir, what makes you think we're going to get out of this alive? I don't think it'll be long before I blow us both to kingdom come," David said.

Another of the lights on the Oblivion Continuum switched on. Father Octavian had to make David focus on his love for Socorro in order to stop the bomb from detonating.

"I'm asking you to trust me, David. When this is all over, you must find Socorro and tell her how much you love her," Father Octavian said firmly.

"I'm not human anymore, Father Octavian. I'm not a man, but a freak. How could Socorro ever love something like me?" David asked, tears streaming down his face.

This tactic was not working. Father Octavian tried another approach. "Do you believe she loved you?"

"Yes, Sir. I do. She told me she loved me with all her heart and she would never forget me."

"You may not have a human body any longer, but in your mind and in your heart, you are still the same person Socorro fell in love with."

David frowned. "You don't think she would find me repulsive?"

"David, love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful and endures through every circumstance. Do you believe that to be true?"

David smiled. "Yes, Sir, I do."

"Then you must find this beautiful woman and marry her…have a child, in fact, have many children," Father Octavian said, smiling.

"Are you suggesting I leave the service of the Church?" David asked, surprised.

"Yes. But you must do one thing for me," Father Octavian said.

"Of course, Sir, anything."

"I must be the one to marry you."

David chuckled. The last of the lights on the Oblivion Continuum switched off, therefore, deactivating the bomb.

"David, look at your chest," Father Octavian said, smiling.

David glanced at his chest and gasped. "Sir, what does this mean?"

"I believe it means the bomb has been disarmed. You just proved you are human, David. You are an emotional being – and that makes you human!" Father Octavian said.

As David stood and shouted in triumph, the Bishop, suffering from pain and exhaustion, closed his eyes and finally surrendered to the darkness.

The TARDIS materialized beside the old house. The Doctor and River rushed out of the Blue Box and into the house. David rose to his feet as the Time Lord and River Song rushed into the room.

"Who are you?" David asked as he stood in a fighting stance, ready to defend the unconscious Bishop.

"I'm the Doctor and this is River Song. We're here to help you, David," the Doctor said, bringing his hands up in surrender.

River held her sensor up to David's chest. "There are no readings – the bomb's been disabled."

"I'm no longer a threat," David said calmly.

"Yes, we can see that," the Doctor said rather surprised. "How did you manage that?"

David shrugged. "I'm not sure. Look, Doctor, Father Octavian has been badly injured…"

"I'm not that kind of Doctor, but, I've contacted your ship and they're sending a team to extract you and also find the two missing clerics…"

"Two?" David asked, surprised.

"Yes. Joshua and Caleb are still missing," the Doctor said.

"Bob is alive then?" David asked, relieved.

"Yes. He's back on the ship as are Christian and Angelo. Do you know where the two missing clerics are?" River asked.

"I do, but, I don't think they survived the German army's shelling of that field. I was given a new mission, and that was to kill Father Octavian and the team if any survived the raid…but I just couldn't do it," David said.

"And that's a good thing, David. You'll need to report everything that's happened to your Commander," the Doctor said.

"I can't go back to the ship. They wouldn't accept me…the way I am now," David said sadly.

The Doctor placed his hand on David's shoulder. "But you're wrong, David, you'll be more valuable to them now because of who you are."

The Doctor smiled as David nodded in agreement. "Father Octavian said no matter what's been done to me, I'm still human," David said.

"He's absolutely right, and you'll discover everyone will see it that way as well. Now, David, please go with River," the Doctor said as he motioned to River. Once River led David out of the room the Time Lord knelt beside Father Octavian and whispered explicit instructions in his ear.

"Remember, follow my instructions exactly," the Doctor said as he patted the Bishop's shoulder. "And I'll see you on the Byzantium..."

TBC