Hey everyone! I am SO sorry that this chapter took so long but I had an extended holiday and then I was piled high with assignments! Please remember to review!
Title: No Longer Alone
Summary: The Doctor always felt alone, and then one day out of the blue, he found himself face to face with a woman who knew of the Time War, and how to fly a TARDIS. And when he finds out she has two hearts he knows he'll never be alone again.
Rating: M
Author/s: Baylee Shadow (read a Nightmarish Shadow's profile, you'll understand)
Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who! (But I wish I did!)
Amy and Rory swam up beside them and groaned in disappointment. Yalaea swam a bit closer to examine the bars. "Look here!" she pointed "the bars are rustin'. We may just be able to break through…?"
The Doctor swam up beside her and peered at the grill, "We could try."
Yalaea grinned and wrapped both hands around a bar. She tugged as hard as she could and heard a satisfying grinding noise emitting form the joins. She tried again and the noise grew louder. "Nearly there" she spat through gritted teeth. She gave one last tug and the bar gave way, sending her flying downwards. She swam back up grinning like an idiot. "Tha' wasn't so hard."
The Doctor grinned back and then he started working on another bar. Amy and Rory soon joined him. Together they made quick progress and soon there was a large enough hole for them to swim through. Yalaea was the first to swim out of the hole. She floated above it as the others swam after her. They had emerged from a hole in the side of a mountain, the city stretched out below them.
"It's beautiful" Yalaea breathed,
"Isn't it" the Doctor replied.
"Uh…Doctor?" Rory asked,
"What?" the Doctor spun around to face him.
"I think we should move." Rory pointed to a cloud of Merfolk swimming angrily towards them. Yalaea examined the approaching Merfolk with confusion.
"Why aren't there any males?" she muttered to herself, "For tha' matter, why haven't we seen any males?"
The Doctor looked up at her "That's a good point Yal." He paused, rubbing his chin in thought "Maybe they crash landed here and only the females survived…?"
"That's possible…" Yalaea said thoughtfully "bu' why do they want us?"
The Doctor shook his head "I don't know…maybe they need us somehow to convert us into Mermen…"
Yalaea shrugged "That's likely…but…" she searched through her memories "Maybe this city is what started the myth of Atlantis…Wasn't it that only men were taken?" Yalaea pondered.
"Yeah" Amy said "I remember the story of Atlantis. I never really got that interested in it but I enjoyed it nevertheless."
"Yeah I remember you reading that when we were kids." Rory said "But…I think we should move now!"
Yalaea glanced over to the group of Mermaids and was surprised at how quickly they had moved. "Yeah, let's go!" she started to swim away but the Mermaid's were faster. One of them threw a net and it entangled around Yalaea's body, sending her down to the sea floor. "Let me go!" she growled as three Merfolk lifted her up, still trapped in the net. The Merfolk shook their heads, grinning creepily at Yalaea. She twisted her head around as much as the net would let her, looking for the Doctor, Amy and Rory. She groaned as she saw that all of them had been caught in nets much like hers. Well that's just great! She thought in exasperation.
They weren't carried back to the city as Yalaea had expected, instead they were put down in something that resembled a watchtower. Yalaea was thrown to the floor, landing almost on top of the Doctor. "Sorry" she muttered,
"Its fine" he breathed back. Yalaea laughed and earned a jab from one of the Mermaid's tridents.
"Ow!" she yelped "Tha' hur' mate!"
The Merfolk made a strange hissing noise that Yalaea interpreted as laughter. Yalaea glared and one of the Merfolk came closer.
"You are not of this world!" she hissed,
"Neither are you!" Yalaea replied.
"We had no choice. We crashed on this tiny planet and we cannot return to Thálassa."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow in question "Thálassa?" he asked.
"Our home planet!" the Mermaid replied. "We were catapulted into the ocean and we built our city here, Atlantia. Luckily we had been taught be the Priestess Ariel and we managed to survive."
Yalaea smirked "told you tha' this was the mythical 'Atlantis'!"
"Quite!" the Mermaid jabbed her again.
"Would you stop doin' tha'!" Yalaea grumbled. The Mermaid ignored her.
"So" the Doctor said "Only the females survived?" he asked.
"Yes" the Mermaid replied. "We have finally salvaged enough technology to star converting the humans."
"Okay." The Doctor said brightly "That's all I needed to know!" he whipped out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the nets. The familiar sound was warped by the water but the threads of the nets still sprang apart. Yalaea, Amy and Rory leapt to their feet and swam out the door,
"We won't be seein' you!" Yalaea called as she waited for the Doctor to follow her.
"Go!" the Doctor yelled as he swam past her. Yalaea grinned and followed him into the open ocean. They swam for a while, slowly heading upwards before both Rory and the Doctor stopped dead.
"Wha'?" Yalaea asked swimming around to face the Doctor as Amy tugged on Rory's arm.
"Come on Rory!" she said "Let's go!"
"Doctor?" Yalaea placed her hand on his shoulder "Can you hear me?"
The Doctor looked dazed "Yal…?" he murmured "Can't you hear them?"
"I can!" Rory said suddenly "They're so beautiful…" a dreamy smile spread across his face.
"Who is?" Amy demanded
"They are…their voices are perfect…" Rory started to swim back towards the Mermaids.
"Oh no you don't!" Amy yelled and she grabbed Rory's arms and pulled him back.
"No! No please don't!" he yelled "I've got to be with them!"
Yalaea turned back to face the Doctor and found him gone. She swore as she saw him float towards the Mermaids. She easily caught up with him and was surprised when he didn't put up a fight as she led him back to Amy and Rory. "Doctor?" she asked again.
"Yal? Is that you?" the Doctor shook his head as though coming out of a trance.
"Yeah it's me." Yalaea smiled "You okay?"
"I think so…" the Doctor rubbed his head "But I'm not sure about Rory…" he turned to where Amy was wrestling to keep Rory by her side. "I think it's the Merfolk" the Doctor continued "I believe that they're singing and it is drawing Rory in."
"Wha'? Like the siren?" Yalaea asked.
"Yeah…actually, a lot like the siren." The Doctor tilted his head in thought "I think that they Mermaids need to convert people into Mermen as only the females survived. I think that their machines are stuck on human so that's why it isn't affecting me as much…"
Yalaea nodded "Tha' makes sense…" she looked over to Rory "So how do we stop it?"
"I don't know" the Doctor shrugged "Maybe if we get him above water…but I don't think the Merfolk will let us go without a fight."
Yalaea turned around and found the Doctor to be right. "Come on!" she yelled as swam over to Rory. She took one arm while Amy took the other and together they dragged Rory upwards. But it was too slow. The Mermaids were gaining on them and soon Yalaea could hear them hissing. "Faster, faster!" she muttered. The Doctor was lagging behind. "Doctor!" Yalaea called and he looked up sharply.
"Sorry!" he said, kicking faster and quickly overtaking her. Yalaea's legs were on fire, every muscle burning in pain. "Not long now. Please let it not be long!" she begged. Yalaea risked a glance downwards and immediately regrated it. The Mermaids were at their heels. One even managed to cut Yalaea's leg with its trident. Yalaea glanced away and discovered that she was finding it harder to breath. Well that's great. Just great! She thought. "We're running out of air!" she called to the others "Take a deep breath." Even after saying that Yalaea only had enough time for a regular breath before the air failed. Now there was even less time that before. Come on. Come on! Yalaea's lungs were burning and she could no longer feel her legs. Yalaea was only aware of Rory's arm under her fingers. Blackness flickered around the edges of her vision and she knew she wouldn't make it. Just as the blackness slipped over her, Yalaea had a vision of the Doctor standing over her.
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