Here it is, guys. The final chapter. It took me three years, but it's finally here. Thank you to anyone who made it this far. It's been a long journey.

Gwen barely realized that she was screaming. She quelled her cries soon after she realized. As soon as she stepped into the chamber, her body felt like it was both on fire and being electrocuted. She wasn't sure if her nerves would be completely gone by the end of it. The light from the core didn't help her situation, either.

She tried shielding her eyes, but she found that she couldn't block a light that was all around her. In fact the light almost seemed to be part of her now. She wondered if she could just...stay there. Her eyes felt heavy, and her body started to weigh her down.

She shook herself awake again when she felt her own tears on her face. She was in pain, but she didn't quite seem to be registering it. Her body was probably dying.

What was she doing again?

The levers.

Both her arms stretched out. She could barely tell when they clasped onto the two levers. Her entire body felt numb. It took all of her strength to pull them down.

The light died down to a tolerable level and feeling returned to her body. It was not a feeling she wanted. She cried out again, her entire body in immense pain.

Against her body's wishes, she turned around to exit the core. As soon as she was out, she collapsed onto the floor. Her face was wet from the tears.

Her body curled up into the fetal position as she felt numerous hands grab her. That was too many hands. She cracked her eyes open, seeing a large group of people surrounding her. Were these people from the station? Or was this the afterlife? If so, it sucked. A lot.

"What…?" Her voice croaked out. The simple use of her vocal cords was enough to send her pain into another overdrive. She squeezed her eyes shut, more tears forming in them.

"Gwen? G..w..e.n…." She heard the Doctor try to say. It seemed so distant. She barely had time to try and register anything he was saying before she passed out.

Gwen woke with a start, shooting up from where she was lying. Flashes of the core were racing through her mind. Her eyes danced around the room, trying to figure out where she was.

The place seemed...white. Simple. A small picture was hung up across from her on the wall. She looked to herself, finding an IV in her arm.

She contemplated whether or not she wanted to rip the thing out, for dramatic effect, but decided against it. Her better half always was pretty boring.

She began looking around again, and startled when she noticed she wasn't alone. The Doctor was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room. Or, more accurately, he was passed out in a corner.

Gwen cleared her throat, to which the Doctor responded. His head shot up, immediately making eye contact with her. He comedically popped out of his chair. "Gwen!" he announced to nobody in particular.

Her hand went to her head. "What happened?"

"How long do you think you were in the core?" he asked solemnly.

"I don't know...a couple minutes?" she asked, her eyes scrunched up in uncertainty.

The Doctor shook his head. "You were in there for almost an hour, Gwen."

She deadpanned. "Are...are you serious?"

"Clara took Micah, the man we found down there, and returned with some people. She told them what you did. She told them that you were putting your life at risk for them. They were quick to come and help."

Gwen's eyes flew to her hands, studying the lines in her palms. "I had no idea. But...I'm alive I suppose."

He smiled sadly. "Yes, you're alive. But you know the cost of this."

She nodded, having nothing to say in reply.

A knock sounded on the door, drawing the attention of both the occupants of the room. The Doctor stood up to open it. A small group of people stood outside. They seemed official. "May we enter? We would like to discuss the future with Gwendolyn."

The Doctor turned to Gwen, who nodded. He turned back. "Of course."

Three people entered the room, all wearing some official military garb. "Hello, Gwendolyn. First of all, on behalf of all of us in the Fiderian Space Fleet, I'd like to thank you for your noble act."

She smiled. They didn't understand that she'd just lost everything in her life. "I appreciate it."

"Second of all, I'm here to talk business. From what we understand, you need a home since you are unable to return to yours, due to unknown circumstances. I'd like to make you an offer."

Gwen nodded. "I'd like to hear it."

"We want to offer you a job on board this station. While you eliminated the source of the problem, there are still countless abominations still hiding on board. We've deemed this station safe enough for travel, with enough military presence, but we could always use more. You'd have to train, of course, but we would also offer you accommodations aboard."

"If she were to accept, she'd need a large pay and plenty of free time. She shouldn't have to answer to many people. If those conditions aren't met, it's no deal," The Doctor said. Gwen turned to him in surprise and was about to protest, but stopped when he gave her a wink.

The man smiled. "Of course. We'd be happy to honor that request, for everything that you've done for this station, Gwendolyn."

He reached out his hand, a confirmation of a deal. Gwen thought through her options. Did she really want to join a military force?

But...what other option did she have? She was stuck here. She took the man's hand and gave him one firm shake. "It's a deal…"

"Commander Brusch. I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other often in the next few years, Gwendolyn."

After Gwen was discharged, she was given information about her new room on board. The Doctor lead her through the halls.

She started studying the numbers on the doors after they'd been walking for some time. When she saw a number that she recalled from earlier, she called out. "Hey! You're taking me in circles!"

He chuckled. The first sign of happiness that Gwen had seen out of him since she'd been on board. "I wondered when you would notice. Oh, that was too funny."

She rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help the smile that creeped onto her face.

Eventually, they came to a room marked as 1237. The Doctor entered the code quickly. It seemed familiar to him. How long had they known that she was going to end up here?

Once the code was entered, the door split down the center then retracted into the walls. When they entered the room, Gwen found that it was certainly spacious. The queen sized bed seemed to be the centerpiece of the room. Of to the side was a small kitchenette with a small table. Two other doors existed, more than likely her bathroom and her closet. She was told that she was already stocked with food, clothes, and any other necessities she may need.

Other than the room, Clara was the first thing to catch Gwen's eyes. She stood off to the side of the room by the chronograph that the Doctor had just finished building. She smiled at Gwen, but her look was only saddened. Gwen hated seeing the two like this.

"Welcome to your new home," Clara said as cheerfully as she could.

Gwen smiled, setting her few possessions onto her bed. "Thank you guys."

"We're going to have to take off, Gwen, but I want to show you the chronograph first."

Gwen followed the Doctor over to where Clara was standing, no hint of emotion pulling her one way or another.

"It's like the chronograph at the Lodge, with one difference. This chronograph can take you not only through time, but to another location. If you were to travel back in time in this location, you would probably die, since this station wouldn't have been built yet."

She nodded, turning to look up at the Doctor. She wrapped her arms around his torso. "Thank you so much."

The Doctor returned the hug, momentarily resting his chin on her head. "Anything for you, Gwen."

The Doctor wasn't sure how to describe the look on Gideon's face, but it certainly wasn't a good one. After he'd finished explaining that Gwen was essentially stuck in the future, Gideon had gone kind of blank.

That didn't last long. The Doctor suddenly felt a burning pain the the side of his face. He brought his hand up to his face, barely registering that he'd just been punched.

Gideon's face had transformed yet again. It was a deep tomato red, something usually only seen in cartoons.

A red stain started to form on his sleeve. He must have reopened his wound from the Lodge, but he didn't seem to care. "You were supposed to look out for her!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. The Doctor was thankful that there wasn't anybody else on the street. "You should have stopped her! It should have been you!"

The Doctor wanted to argue. Gwen refused to listen to him, and she made up her own mind. However, the words only seemed to echo his own thoughts. It should have been him. It wasn't Gwen's burden to carry. He deserved something like that, not her.

Gideon was about to throw another punch when they were interrupted by a poof of red dust and a sudden cry of pain. Gwen put her hands up to her head.

"Gw...Gwen?" Gideon asked, forgetting his opponent.

She looked up slowly, trying to make eye contact with Gideon. "Hey."

It was very sudden, but in a moment, Gwen was pushed against the building behind Gideon. His hand was pushed against her chest. She let out a puff of air as she collided with the brick. "What the hell is your problem? You think it's okay to act like a hero and get stuck in the future?"

Gwen cried out in pain, unable to register much of what was happening. Her body flared up again, reminding her of her experience in the core.

Once Gideon realized what he'd done, he released Gwen. She dropped to her knees, unable to hold herself up. "Oh, God, Gwen. I'm so sorry."

He tried to pull her back up but she waved him off. "It's okay. You're okay. Doctor, thank you, but I think I should explain to him. No need for another black eye, huh?" She laughed.

"Gwen…" he started.

"Nope," She interrupted. "I don't want to hear it. I know I'll see you again. Until the next adventure, Doctor."

It felt like a final goodbye. Was it? Would they ever return to see her? Part of him said Of course, you need to visit her. But another part of him was in doubt. It didn't feel right, knowing about the incident.

"Until the next one, Gwen."

The Doctor slammed his hands against the consol. "There has to be something else we can do. This is wrong. She shouldn't have to deal with this."

"Doctor…" Clara said, trying to comfort the Time Lord, but finding no words.

He started turning dials and pulling levers, a set determination in his demeanor. "I'm going to fix this. I'll fix everything."

"But you can't, Doctor. You can't-"

Clara was interrupted by the jerking of the machine. The Doctor turned to her, his face angry. "I can. I can fix it."

Clara wasn't sure what to do. He seemed determined to break the timeline, something she assumed was forbidden. She looked at the date that he'd entered into the TARDIS, taken aback by what was shown. He couldn't…

As soon as the TARDIS came to a halt, the Doctor jumped into action. He ran out the doors, Clara unable to stop the madman.

The silurian reached out her hand, gun raised, and was about to grab the clueless girl walking by the alley. The Doctor's hand clamped around her mouth seconds before she would have grabbed the girl, silently trapping the woman in his arms, ensuring that she wouldn't make a sound.

The girl paused, then kept walking. The Doctor smiled.

Gwen was nursing her hangover on her way to the lodge. Her hand caressed her head. She was really regretting her decision from earlier to drink. She passed by an alleyway, but as soon as she did, her mind went blank.

She paused mid stride, stopping in the middle of the abandoned sidewalk. Something felt wrong. It was almost like jamais vu. It was like she'd forgotten what she was supposed to do.

She shook her head and continued walking. God, was she going to have to complain to Lesley about this later.

Fin

I can't believe that this is it. I'd imagined this ending three years ago. It was surreal to actually write it. On the other hand, I am so relieved that I'm finished. I put this off for way too long, and I guess this is just one more thing off my plate. Not to mention I don't even watch Doctor Who anymore! I hope you enjoyed this story. Feel free to leave a review. Thank you for sticking with me until the very end!