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Chapter 21: Byzantium Down
Current location: Alfava Metraxis, somewhere within the Gan belt of the Dundra System.
Current weather: Nice out, weather was perfect at the moment, though with chances of rain later.
Current level of irritation: High. Very damn high.
The Doctor, having been dragged into an injudicious situation by the one and only River Song wearing a black evening dress and red high heels, was not happy. Not one bit. Not only had Dr. Song carved Old High Gallifreyan on an ancient Home Box, doing so twelve-thousand years in the past, but she had also taken the TARDIS controls away from him and steered the ship to a planet which she wished to follow where a certain ship had ended up. She practically flaunted in his face about how much she knew about the TARDIS and about how much 'better' she was at driving. Well, he had news for her, she was nothing compared to his Wanderer. So, ha!
Then, of course, Amy had to go and ask about a million questions about the new woman. Okay, maybe not a million, but it felt like it. It even irritated the Doctor more when Amy asked if he and River were some kind of 'couple.' Oh, that just irked him to no end. Why would Amy even think of something like that? And before he could set the record straight about his Wanderer being the only person for him, Amy ran out of the TARDIS in excitement to see a new planet for the first time. Perfect. By all guesses, most likely he was stuck here now. Just peachy.
At first, when he had seen the Old High Gallifreyan on the ancient Home Box, the Doctor had assumed the message was from Wanda somehow. The 'Hello, sweetie!' seemed like something the Wanderer would do to earn his attention. Then, this only had raised his alarm when realizing the only reason Wanda would go to such means to message him would be because she was in trouble. So of course he panicked, broke the glass case in the museum where the Home Box had been on display, and ran back to the TARDIS before the museum guards could catch him and Amy. (He'd never be going back to that museum again.) And, of course, to his mighty surprise, after connecting the Home Box to the TARDIS, he saw the security footage from the ship had been River Song. After he jumped to get River (still assuming it had something to do with Wanda), it came to his attention that, apparently, the message on the box, as stated by River, 'wasn't meant for him.'
And it had just all gone downhill from there, leading them to present time.
The Doctor marched outside, glancing up towards the high cliff area where the ship they had been chasing crashed. Crashing right into some kind of large temple by the looks of it by the way the building had been built into the cliff so perfectly. The building had been mostly destroyed by the ship running right into the centre of it. Only the tail of the ship stuck out into the air. Everything else was in burnt rubble. Pieces of building and ship were everywhere, even on the beach where they stood. All of which was on fire.
"What caused it to crash?" River asked the Doctor once he walked closer to where she stood, both observing the destruction around them. Amy stood ways back, both fascinated by the disaster and by the way River and the Doctor both acted around each other. River gave the Doctor a side glance. "Not me."
"Nah, the airlock would've sealed seconds after you blew it," the Doctor explained dismissively. "According to the Home Box, the warp engines had a phase-shift. No survivors."
"A phase-shift would have to be sabotage. I did warn them," River stated knowingly. She began to dig into the small purse she had been carrying. The Doctor frowned, trying to keep himself from asking any more questions and getting involved. But damn his curiosity, it got the better of him.
"About what?" he quizzed.
River seemed to ignore this as she gazed back up to the temple in front of them, not even looking at the Doctor in acknowledgment. "At least the building was empty. Aplan temple. Unoccupied for centuries." She gave him a smirk that said she knew she had him hooked in for finding out more.
The Doctor, however, gave her a pointed glare and walked away. Not wishing to bother with delving more into this planet, the crashed ship, or even being around River Song herself. He went to walk back over to the TARDIS, but Amy stepped in his way, with her arms crossed and staring curtly at him.
"Aren't you going to introduce us?" she asked in expectancy, but also curious as to why exactly the Doctor seemed to know this strange woman. Or, better yet, why the woman seemed to know him. Did Wanda know about this woman? Would she be happy to find out that the Doctor had some sort of secret woman in his life? The Doctor turned reluctantly back around, waving at hand for introductions.
"Amy Pond, Professor River Song," the Doctor stated. River gasped, turning around with a wide grin.
"I'm going to be a professor someday, am I?" she asked in delight. "How exciting!" She laughed, turning back to stare at the crash, holding out some sort of radio in her hands. "Spoilers!"
The Doctor winced, internally scolding himself for letting foreknowledge slip. This was another reason he did not want to be around River. Too many possibilities of them both ruining their past or futures. So many spoilers in their lives. How did Wanda keep track of them all with everyone's life? It seemed impossible to keep up with.
"Yeah, but who is she and how did she do that?" Amy whispered to the Doctor, trying to keep her voice down so River would not hear. "She just left you a note in a museum." The Doctor turned, putting a finger to his lips and shushed her.
"Two things always guaranteed to turn up into a museum," River spoke up, surprising Amy that she had overheard. "The Home Box of category-four starliner and, sooner or later," she turned, smirking greatly, "him. It's how he keeps score. He has such an ego." Amy laughed while the Doctor pouted, feeling greatly disgruntled. He laughed in irritation while the two females chortled in front of him, even discussing more on his 'ego.' He did not have an ego.
"I'm nobody's taxi service!" he scolded River, pointing sharply at her. "I'm not going to be there to catch you every time you feel like jumping out of a spaceship."
"And you are so wrong," River retorted with a smirk.
"Oh, yeah? And why's that?" the Doctor bit back.
"Because Wanda would kill you if you didn't," River said slyly. She snickered at the look of great irritation on his face. She watched as he stomped away from her, knowing she had won their argument.
"Wait, you know Wanda, too?" Amy asked River curiously.
"Yes, I know her very well," River replied, continuing to fiddle with her radio. "I met her way before I even ran into the Doctor."
"And when's that?" Amy quizzed, hoping to know more.
River smirked at Amy and winked. "Spoilers."
Amy frowned for a moment, feeling annoyed that this River Song refused to answer any proper questions. Then, it hit her. Amy's eyes lit up as she realized she had heard that term used by Wanda quite a few times. And then she remembered the Time Lady telling her about where she herself had learned that term. From her sister. Amy was about to hurriedly ask River about this when the woman spoke up again.
"There's one survivor," River said, gaining the Doctor's attention again. "There's a thing in the belly of that ship that can't ever die." The Doctor turned slowly around from where he had his back turned to the two females, his eyes sparking with cautious interest. River smirked and nodded. "Now you're listening." She turned to her radio, holding it up to her ear. "You lot in orbit yet?" She walked away from the two, going off to speak her arriving company.
Amy walked over to the Doctor, who appeared to be greatly disgruntled by the whole situation. But seemed to be too interested now by the crashed ship to be bothered in leaving. After a moment, River turned back to the Doctor and Amy, holding up her radio.
"Doctor, can you sonic me?" she asked in expectancy. "I need to boost the signal so we can use it as a beacon." Reluctantly, the Doctor pulled out his screwdriver and pointed it at the held up radio, doing as River asked. He rolled his eyes as River did a small curtsey and then continued on talking with the people on the radio.
"Oh, Doctor. You sonicked her," Amy teased him, though having a hint of crossness in her voice.
"Shut up," the Doctor grumbled in response. Suddenly, a voice rang out from behind both him and Amy.
"River! River, River, River, River! Haha!"
The Doctor and Amy both blinked as a blur of blonde hair zoomed by them and ran straight at River. The woman with curly hair turned in surprise but smiled brightly as the new arrival slammed into her open arms. There was joyous laughter as the new arrival and River hugged each other happily. The Doctor grew a warm smile on his face while Amy stared on in shock when seeing how River spun around the arriving Wanda. The Time Lord could not help but feel a happy swell in his hearts, simply glad to see Wanda so elated in seeing River, her adopted sister, again.
"I knew you'd get here eventually," River stated in delight.
"Ha! Of course!" responded the giddy Wanda. "I'd never miss out on helping my big sister." River laughed along with Wanda before abruptly stopping in her merriment when spotting very angry marks on the Time Lady's neck. Immediately, River went to big sister mode, narrowing her eyes crossly and examined the blonde girl's neck.
"What happened to your neck?" River asked, sounding stern. Wanda backed away, brushing River's hand off her neck.
"Nothing. It's nothing," said Wanda in dismissal. Having heard River's question, the Doctor came up beside Wanda in an instant, holding an angered expression as he studied her neck, touching it as gently as he could.
"Who did this to you?" he gritted angrily, looking ready to hurt the person who dared touch his Wanderer. "Tell me."
"It was an accident. It's nothing to worry about. I'm fine," Wanda said sternly, trying to get the two of them to stop fussing over her. Seriously, they were both way too overprotective at times.
"What sort of accident?" came a question from Amy as she walked up closer to them.
"Just an accident. It wasn't anyone's fault," Wanda explained. She glanced up towards the cliff, seeing the crashed Byzantium sticking out of the Aplan temple. "Ah. So we're here are we? That's just brilliant. I was so looking forward to a day of terror of not blinking."
"Don't change the subject. Who did this?" the Doctor demanded in question, feeling his irritation from before feeding into his ire of Wanda having bruises on her neck. The only possible way she had received those marks is if someone had choked her, and he needed to know who exactly did it so he could teach them a lesson about hurting his Wanderer.
"Forget about it. It's spoilers," Wanda grounded firmly, indicating that the subject was over. River glanced at the Doctor, seeing him ready to argue over this. She rolled her eyes and slapped him on the back of the head.
"Leave it alone, Doctor. If she says it's spoilers, then it's spoilers," River replied in a stern manner. She walked over, linking her arms with Wanda and giving a smile. "So, how have you been, sweetie? Been getting into much trouble?"
"You know it," Wanda snickered as they walked away from the puzzled Amy and irritated Doctor. The Time Lord let out a frustrated puff of air.
"I hate spoilers," he grumbled as he stomped after the two. Amy followed closely behind him. They caught up with River and Wanda, watching how the woman was flipping through an old blue journal while listing off different events.
"Have we done Fayzlap Airways yet?" River asked Wanda.
"Nope, not yet. But that one does sound interesting," replied the Time Lady. River nodded, continuing to flip through the different pages.
"What about the Tusks of Icecapade Tundra?" she quizzed.
"Nope," Wanda shook her head. Amy raised a brow, completely bewildered by their strange interactions.
"What's the book?" questioned the companion, staring at the journal with interest.
"Stay away from it," the Doctor ordered her when seeing Amy trying to sneak a peek of the written words.
"What is it though?" Amy quizzed the Doctor, looking suspicious of the journal and River.
"It's River's diary," Wanda explained, giving the companion a smile. "It's how we keep track of things. None of us really meet up in the same order, so gotta keep a record somehow."
"You're forgetting, sweetie, it's our diary," River clarified to Wanda. The Time Lady nodded with a smile.
The four of them quickly looked over when seeing four, small tornados-like whirlwinds appearing a small distance away from them. Four men in military uniforms, carrying large guns, stood around in a daze for a few seconds from being transported onto the planet's surface. One man in uniform glared in disproval in the direction of River, stomping towards her.
"You promised me an army, Dr. Song," the man said gruffly.
"No, I promised you the equivalent of an army," clarified River, holding a cheeky smile as she patted Wanda's shoulder. "And here she is. The Wanderer." Upon Wanda clearing her throat and giving River a pointed look, the woman rolled her eyes and nodded in the Doctor's direction. "Oh, yes, there's him too, I suppose." The Doctor shot River a look of irritation. Wanda elbowed River in the side, causing the woman to chuckle.
"Be nice," Wanda muttered in a scolding manner at the woman. The Time Lady then smiled politely at the military man. "It's really the Doctor here you want, not me." The man in uniform seemed greatly surprised by this, turning to the Doctor, honoured to see the famous man in person.
"Father Octavian, sir," introduced the man, shaking the Doctor's hand in firm respect. "Bishop, second class. Twenty clerics at my command. The troops are already in the drop ship and landing shortly. Dr. Song was helping us with a covert investigation." The Doctor dropped the man's hand once they were done shaking, then gazed up towards the crashed ship, beginning to wonder what exactly was so important about it. As if reading his mind, Octavian went on speaking. "Has Dr. Song explained what we're dealing with?"
"No, but knowing the Weeping Angels, it isn't going to be pretty," stated Wanda with an exasperated sigh.
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The sun began to set over the horizon, very quickly sending them all into the night. More military personnel began to arrive, setting up base just below the cliff side of the downed Byzantium. The fire caused by the wreckage had long since burnt out, leaving the place eerily quiet. Only the still air was broken by the babbling of the many soldiers and the crashing of waves on the shoreline. Wanda sat by one of the many tents that had been placed up, observing how the Doctor and Amy were given the details of what the military had come for by Father Octavian. Wanda had drifted away from the conversation earlier, already knowing everything the Octavian was going to say. All about the Angel, the catacombs within the temple, etc. All leading to one big and clear message: This was not going to turn out well. Especially with what was really hiding away inside the temple.
Wanda bounced her leg nervously, then gave said leg a slap in disgust.
"Stop that. You're not allowed to be worried," she scolded the leg. She huffed, leaning her chin within her hand as she watched the Doctor and Amy talking with Octavian over by a large map desk. "I'm tired of always worrying. I'm tired of being a drag and deadweight."
"You're most certainly not deadweight, sweetie," came the voice of River Song. Glancing over to see Dr. Song standing beside her, all dressed in uniform as the rest of the army, Wanda smiled crookedly.
"Nice outfit. Suits you, I think," Wanda stated, turning her eyes back to the Doctor and Amy, seeing how both were muttering away about something or another. Something must be getting on the Doctor's nerves for he was beginning to pull the 'Mr. Grumpy Time Lord' expression.
"Are you going to tell me what really happened to your neck?" River suddenly asked Wanda, gaining the Time Lady's attention once more.
"I don't know. You gonna tell me what's really wrong with my head?" Wanda joked in response.
However, she did keep a keen eye on the woman, observing what her reaction would be. Wanda knew that in a certain point in the woman's life, River knew what mystery was behind in the Time Lady's mind. Though, Wanda also knew that it was very old, very late Rivers who knew this. All versions River who were almost a hair away from reaching the moment of the Library. So, Wanda really never knew when exactly the woman learned the truth. Must be when Wanda herself found out on some sort of adventure. She did remember River saying how she had met a younger Ten at one point. Could that be it?
"I don't know what you're talking about, sweetie," River replied smoothly, not meeting Wanda's gaze as she stared off at the Doctor and Amy.
"Uh-huh. Sure you don't," Wanda chortled lowly, shaking her head. "Just like you don't know that Amelia Pond is really your—."
"Spoilers," River stated quickly, hitting Wanda in the arm as the Time Lady giggled.
"I'm just messing with you," Wanda laughed. Jumping up from the crate she had been sitting on, she brushed her hands together as if preparing for what was to come. "Well, we don't have all night. Best show the Doctor what you've found."
Holding up her fingers, Wanda blew a sharp whistle, gaining the Doctor and Amy's attention. Even a few people from the army stopped short in surprise to the sudden noise. Both Time Lord and companion turned swiftly around, looking stunned when they realized that Wanda had not been with them the entire time. She waved them over as River called the Doctor to see what was inside a drop ship that had been placed there by the military earlier. Father Octavian followed after them a moment later.
Once all inside the drop ship, River showed them all security footage she had required from the Byzantium. It was a constant four-second loop that showed a Weeping Angel standing close to the edge of the cell it had been placed in. With its back turned to the camera, it hung its head and kept its hands over its face to hide away from the world. River asked for the Doctor's opinion on the video, watching as the man stood close to the computer screen to examine the image carefully. He confirmed to the group of it being an Angel since Father Octavian was hoping it was not. Wanda was only half paying attention to the conversation, mutely hearing River explaining to Amy what a Weeping Angel truly was. Instead, Wanda kept her sole attention on the image of the Weeping Angel. Not taking her eyes off of it for even a second. She knew what it really was, and she did not want it to take anyone away.
Wanda blinked when the Doctor suddenly left the drop ship, along with River and Octavian right behind him. Glancing briefly back at the Angel on screen, she turned and went after them. Forgetting all about poor Amy back in the small ship.
"The hyperdrive would've split open on impact. That whole ship's gonna be flooded with drive burn radiation, cracked electrons, gravity storms, deadly to almost any living thing," the Doctor began to speak rapidly once Wanda was outside within earshot. When she had gotten close enough to him, he grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him so they could walk together. Wanda realized he must be really on edge with the Angel around in the way he grasped her hand so tightly.
"Deadly to an Angel?" asked Father Octavian.
"Dinner to an Angel," corrected the Doctor. "The longer we leave it there, the stronger it will grow." He suddenly pointed to the Aplan temple. "Who built that temple? Are they still around?"
"The Aplans. Indigenous life form. Died out four hundred years ago," River named off from one of the devices in her hand.
"Two hundred years later, the planet was terraformed," Octavian added. "Currently there are six billion human colonists." The Doctor stared back at the Bishop in astonishment.
"Ooh! You lot, you're everywhere! You're like rabbits!" the Doctor exclaimed in disbelief.
Look who's talking, Mr. Perv. Wanda scoffed within the Doctor's mind, bumping her hip lightly against his. The Doctor looked at her, smirking slyly.
You're one to talk as well. he teased. Wanda merely stuck out her tongue in response. Looking back at the Aplan temple, her face dropped, staring at the ancient, stone building anxiously. The Doctor squeezed her hand. On a scale of one to ten, how bad will this day go?
About as bad as you can imagine when Weeping Angels are involved. Wanda sighed shaking her head.
The Doctor raised a brow. Any sneak peeks you'd like to give, then?
Hmm. The best sneak peek I can think of is . . . count the statues' heads. She frowned as her mind suddenly clicked, reminding her she was forgetting something. There aren't any pictures.
Sorry?
In the book, there aren't any pictures. And I'm forgetting why. Wanda turned swiftly, walking over to River who had grabbed a book on the Angels, the only book on them, from her supplies after Father Octavian had walked off to gather up his troops. Wanda yanked the book out of River's hand, flipping through the pages hurriedly.
"Sweetie, what is it?" River asked in concern.
"What are you looking for, Wanda?" questioned the Doctor as he came up beside the Time Lady. Turning on her heel to face the two, holding up the book in her hand, Wanda furrowed her brows.
"There aren't any pictures in this book and I can't remember why that is," she explained rapidly. "I mean, I remember it's important. But the memory of why that is isn't coming through. I've looked into the possibilities a little too much from another adventure I had come from, and this headache is killing me, so it's hard concentrating on old memories. But anyway—there's a specific reason in this book as to why there are no pictures." Grabbing the old book from her, the Doctor quickly flipped through the pages, reading them all at a rapid pace. He finally came to a stop on a certain page when he spotted the words of warning.
"'That which holds the image of an angel becomes itself an angel,'" the Doctor read from the page. Wanda gasped as she suddenly remembered, slapping herself on the forward.
"Oh hell! Amy!" she exclaimed, turning on her heel to run back over to the drop ship. The three of them reached the door of the small ship just as Amy began shouting out for help.
"It's in the room!" they heard the girl exclaim from the other side of the deadlocked door. The Doctor and Wanda both banged on the door, beginning to sonic it.
"Are you all right? What's happening?" the Doctor yelled in question to Amy.
"Doctor! It's coming out of television," Amy replied in a frightened voice. "The Angel is here."
"Don't take your eyes off of it, Amy," Wanda instructed as the Doctor crouched down and tried sonicking the panel beside the door. She glanced over at him when seeing him trying to break into another panel on the side of the ship, seeing how River and the Doctor were beginning to argue over the ship being deadlocked. Wanda shook her head and directed her attention back to Amy on the other side of the door. "And whatever you do, don't look at its eyes."
"Um . . . okay," Amy responded weakly.
Wanda groaned and shook her head, replying, "You looked into its eyes, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Amy stated in uncertainty. "Why? What's wrong with looking at its eyes?"
"Nothing at the moment, but you'll find out later," Wanda grumbled as she banged her head on the door.
"It's not deadlocked!" River was heard yelling at the Doctor in frustration.
"Well, it is now!" the Doctor retorted.
"Would you two focus!" Wanda snapped, earning their attention. "We can't get in from the outside, so we need to concentrate on helping Amy from the inside." She turned her attention back to the door while the other two beside her blinked in shock to her scolding them. "Amy, do you have the remote to the monitor?"
"No," Amy told her.
"Get it. But don't blink," Wanda instructed her.
"I'm not blinking! Have you ever tried not blinking?!" Amy exclaimed, her voice travelling away from the door as she went to get the remote. There was a moment's pause as Wanda knew Amy was grabbing the device and trying repeatedly to turn the monitor off, to get rid of the video image of the Angel that was coming out of the screen. "It just keeps switching it back on!"
"Yeah, it's the Angel," the Doctor muttered as he continued to try to get the door open. River yanked out a few wires from the panel beside him, working the same. Even though Wanda had told them it was useless to get the door open, each still seemed determined.
"But it's just a recording," responded Amy, having heard the Doctor speak.
"No, anything that takes the image of an Angel is an Angel," countered the Doctor.
"What's it going to do to me?" Amy began to question in a fearful tone, sounding ready to face whatever death that was coming for her.
"It's not going to do anything to you. We won't let that happen," Wanda said firmly. She tapped her hand on the metal door, trying to get the companion inside to focus on remaining alive. "Look, Amy, really just think about it. Really think. It's a four-second loop."
"Right, okay, and what does that mean?" Amy responded, sounding confused. Then, when Amy spoke again, they could hear her becoming determined and focused. "Okay. One, two, three, four . . ." The door clicked open loudly, allowing Wanda, the Doctor, and River to rush into the small ship. They entered just in time to see the image of the Angel fading away. Amy smiled in victory. "I froze it! I caught it on the blip." She beamed when turning to them.
The Doctor rushed around her, unplugging the monitor from the wall. He sonicked the plug, making certain that the computer screen would be completely disabled. No more trouble coming from the Angel. Wanda rushed up to Amy, giving the girl a hug.
"You worry me way too often," Wanda teased her, punching Amy in the arm. She laughed when the companion went 'ow' and made a disgruntled face. "Good job, Pond. You were brilliant. Wasn't she brilliant, River?"
"More than brilliant," River agreed, giving Amy a hug as well. The ginger girl smiled sheepishly but looked proud of herself all the same.
They all were startled when a sudden massive explosion rumbled outside. The Doctor swiftly walked back out of the drop ship while the three females trailed just behind. The military had broken through into the lower levels of the temple, ready to proceed into the catacombs. The soldiers had thrown a rope ladder down into the hole they had created, beginning to send troops into the darkness below. River and Amy went right after a few of the troops with torches in hand.
"You should really go back into the TARDIS," the Doctor suddenly said to Wanda, halting her as she started to go towards the rope ladder. "It's not safe for you. It's too dangerous."
"Since when have adventures become too dangerous for me?" Wanda scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"Since . . . recently. Because of . . . things," the Doctor said, awkwardly trying to convince her to leave this day to them. Wanda smiled, patting the side of his face sweetly.
"I'll be fine, Spaceman. I'm not leaving you, Amy, and River all alone with an Angel on the loose," she replied firmly, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You just worry too much."
"I don't think I worry enough, actually," he countered, shaking his head with a frustrated sigh. His eyes fixated on the dark bruise around her neck, his face hardening at the way it looked like a pair of man's hands wrapped around her throat. Anger boiled in the pit of his stomach. Eyes flickering to stare at the emerald irises gazing back with full determination and resolve, the Doctor let out an irritated huff, knowing he was going to regret this. "Fine, fine. But stick close to me, all right?"
"Of course, sweetie. Whatever you say." Wanda giggled after this sarcastic remark as the Doctor rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, leading her carefully towards the hole with the rope ladder. Going down the ladder first, he stood at the end of the rope, holding out his hands, ready to catch Wanda as she climbed down as well. The moment her feet had touched the ground, he pulled her close to him, keeping his eyes trained around as if worried an Angel would suddenly come out and take her away.
"Where are we? What is this?" spoke up Amy as she shined her torchlight around within the dark, stone room they had climbed into. She kept trying to make out what was in the dark, but the light of her torch seemed unable to shine very far into the pitch-black surroundings.
"It's an Aplan mortarium, sometimes called a maze of the dead," explained River.
"What's that?" Amy asked out of curiosity.
"Well, if you happen to be a creature of living stone . . .," spoke up the Doctor. He grabbed a gravity globe from Father Octavian, throwing it out and giving it a hard kick, it flew up into the air and lit up the area. Showing them all a massive underground area, with a vast network of inner buildings, bridges, and many, many stone statues, all of which looked ancient with several without their heads. The Doctor held a wry smile. "The perfect hiding place."
Everyone stared around in awe, as well as in disbelief. Things were definitely going to be much more difficult than they originally thought. Giving every close statue a wary glance, Wanda could only feel dread in knowing what each ancient stone figure was going to become later. This day was really, really not going to be good. Scooting closer to the Doctor, the Time Lady held her Time Lord's hand as they gazed around the vast room.
"A stone angel on the loose amongst stone statues," Father Octavian stated wearily. "A lot harder than I prayed for."
"A needle in a haystack," River said.
"A needle that looks like hay. A hay-like needle. Of death. A hay-like needle of death in a haystack of statues," the Doctor rambled on sarcastically as he just knew this day was going to be tiresome.
"'Haystack of statues'?" Wanda snickered next to the Doctor. He pouted at her.
"Hush you. It was a good analogy," he replied. Wanda merely stuck her tongue at him as they began to walk forward.
The soldiers around were ordered by Octavian to begin searching, checking every single statue they would come across. The Doctor, Amy, and Wanda, along with River and Octavian, began their own searching, weaving in between the old statues. Water dripped in echoes around the chamber, trailing down the statues themselves and down the stone walls. Vegetation could be seen growing along the walls as well. Even some vines wrapping themselves around the stone figures standing around. The air was thick, smelling of dirt and musk. A light wind swept through every few moments, sending a chill around everyone. At one point, the Doctor let go of Wanda's hand as they walked through a small tunnel branching away from the main temple room. Wanda stayed close behind, pointing her torch around to keep their path lit up. She felt Amy not too far behind her as they walked.
"Don't you think it's interesting," Wanda suddenly spoke up, trying to gain the Doctor's attention.
"Hmm? What's interesting?" he asked, not really sounding as though he were paying attention as he inspected one statue. Wanda walked up beside him, pointing her torch firmly at the stone figure standing in front of them.
"That all the statues appear to be female," she spoke quietly, trying to sound casual. "They even all look alike. Don't you think?" She knew already from the possibilities that she could not warn them about the Angels just yet. The Angels needed to gain power, moving into the oxygen supply area of the ship above them, so that way the crack in time may be closed. The Angels needed to be the ones to close the crack. For if the rip in time was not closed this day, things would go horribly wrong for the rest of this world. Six billion lives depended on it. But it still did not mean Wanda could not give a few hints, perhaps helping the Doctor along where he needed it.
"Yes, that is interesting," muttered the Doctor as he stared closely at the statue. He frowned in thought turning away to continue down the tunnel. Giving the statue one last hard stare, Wanda moved along after him. She heard River grabbing Amy behind them, ready to give the girl an injection for the radiation they would be facing later. The Time Lady did not pay them much attention as she walked quickly to keep up with the retreating Doctor. Behind the Time Lords, the two companions began talking.
"Ow! I thought you said that wouldn't hurt," Amy grumbled after River placed the needle in her arm.
"I lied," River replied, grinning cheekily.
Grumbling under her breath and rolling her eyes, Amy glanced up to where the Doctor and Wanda had come to a stop. Each of them was examining a statue, muttering quietly to each other. Every few seconds, Amy would observe the Doctor saying something to Wanda, then the Time Lady replying back, followed by her sticking her tongue out and the Time Lord giving a pout. Then he would smile and kiss the blonde girl's cheek, causing her to giggle in delight. Again, Amy felt the spike of uneasiness go through her, something which she had been feeling quite often together, especially with the new arrival of River Song. Did the Doctor just have many women in his life or something?
"So . . . what are they like? In the future, I mean. 'Cause you know them in the future, don't you?" Amy suddenly asked River, decided she needed to get her mind off of her bitter emotions. River gave a small shrug.
"The Doctor . . . well, the Doctor's the Doctor," answered River. She glanced up towards the Time Lords, seeing Wanda bop the Doctor on the nose when he said something cheeky and laughing at the Time Lord's pout. A fond smile appeared on River's face as she watched them both. "And Wanda's a whole other story."
"Oh?" Amy frowned, trying to understand what River meant by this. Glancing towards the Time Lord couple, seeing how they were both silently communicating, gesturing to the surroundings and the statues. Amy looked back at River. "They're not listening in, are they?"
River chuckled and shook her head in amusement. "No. When those two are together, they're basically in their own little world. But when Wanda leaves, well . . . I'm sure you noticed the Doctor sulking around, right?"
Amy nodded, knowing exactly what River meant. The Doctor always did go into this strange, absent zone and slump around the TARDIS when Wanda was away. Frowning, Amy stared carefully at River. "So what are you to the Doctor? His wife or something? 'Cause it kinda seems that way."
River snorted quietly, shaking her head in humour as her shoulders shook from her chuckles. "Oh, Amy, Amy. You really are about as naïve as Wanda."
Amy crossed her arms, huffing in annoyance. "What's that supposed to mean?"
River raised a sly brow. "Isn't it obvious?" She nodded her head towards the two Time Lords, making Amy watch as the Doctor held an arm around Wanda's middle, rubbing at the Time Lady's stomach lovingly.
"But Wanda—Second Wanda—said there wasn't anything going on between them. That they're just friends."
River patted Amy on the shoulder as if explaining to a child. "If there's one thing you have to learn about Wanda, is that younger incarnations are just too innocent minded. She was just as completely oblivious to her relationship as you are to yours."
Blinking in surprise, Amy stared at River warily. "And what do you mean by that?"
"Spoilers." River gave Amy a sly wink and smile, moving away to go towards the Time Lords.
Amy only responded by huffing louder, marching over to join the group. But as soon as she came up beside the trio, the lot of them jumped in shock when they heard rapid gunfire echoing off from the distance. Together they turned and rushed off to find out what was happening. When they arrived to the spot, they saw a young soldier holding his gun tightly in his hands, staring anxiously around. But when he saw the group staring at him in confusion, he lowered his weapon in embarrassment.
"Sorry. Sorry, I thought . . . I thought it looked at me," apologized the young soldier.
"We know what the Angel looks like. Is that the Angel?" Father Octavian berated the young man when he had walked over to see what had happened.
"No, sir," mumbled the solider in embarrassment.
"No, sir, it is not!" barked Octavian. "According to the Doctor, we are facing an enemy of unknowable power and infinite evil. So it would be good, it would be very good, if we could all remain calm in the presence of décor."
Looking at the soldiers, Wanda frowned in disproval. She knew the young soldier, Cleric Bob, was merely nervous beyond belief about facing an Angel. And Octavian yelling at the poor young man would not help matters in stress. Especially since the statue Cleric Bob had shot at most likely really did look at him. Seeing the Doctor get ready to step forward to speak up, she laid a hand on his shoulder to halt him.
Actually, can I talk to him? Wanda asked, nodding her head towards Cleric Bob. Smiling and nodding, the Doctor stepped back to allowing the small blonde Time Lady to step towards the taller soldiers. "Excuse me, but you're Cleric Bob, aka Sacred Bob, correct?" She stepped closer to the young man, seeing how he seemed even more embarrassed now that she was addressing him.
"Yes, ma'am," mumbled Bob. She smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"Just call me Wanda, dear. I'm not big on formalities," she said, keeping her voice light to allow him to not feel so awkward around her. Though, calling a man 'dear,' who appeared to be the same age as her own current face, seemed to strike odd with him by the puzzled expression Bob sent her. Wanda held a very small smirk, knowing the young man would probably freak if he knew that she was actually ninety-eight, almost ninety-nine, years old.
"Look, I know you're scared. A lot of us are," Wanda spoke, her voice gentle and calm. "And really, it's okay to be afraid sometimes. It's what keeps us alive, and only fools think otherwise." Wanda sent a sharp eye at Father Octavian, watching as the older man huffed, his face showing irritation and turned to march away. She directed her gaze back to Bob. "If you get anxious again for the future, just count to three. It's always helped me in the past."
"I don't think you or the Doctor have ever gotten scared, ma'am," Bob muttered, looking pleased that Wanda had stood up for him against Octavian, but still ashamed of his frightened reaction from earlier.
"Nah, we've both gotten scared loads of times," Wanda replied with an encouraging smile. "In fact, I used to be the world's biggest scaredy-cat when I was your age. But having the count-to-three method really helps."
Bob blinked in bewilderment. "My age?"
"Story for later." Wanda waved her hand in dismissal. "Just . . . if you run into trouble or think something suspicious is happening, just give the Doctor a call, okay? He'll be able to sort you out. I'll try to help you the best I can as well. Now, just make sure to take care of yourself, all right, Bob?" Smiling with a gentle expression, she patted his shoulder once more then walked back over to the Doctor. Behind her, she heard Octavian order Bob to go be with Christian and Angelo, two soldiers who had gone searching down a different branching tunnel a while ago. Wanda winced, already knowing the fate of the two soldiers as well as what was going to happen to poor Sacred Bob. She only hoped that perhaps he would listen to her advice and call the Doctor later before running into the Angel from the crashed ship.
The Doctor grabbed her hand as soon as she stood next to him, in bright attitude as he felt heartened when seeing her talking so kindly to mere strangers in need. She understood what it was like to be fearful of the universe more than anyone else. And he felt proud of her for overcoming all her past fears over the many decades that she had been travelling with him. Wanda truly has grown into a magnificent Time Lady. His magnificent Wanderer.
The Doctor, Wanda, River, and Amy continued to move on, going down farther from the large group of soldiers in the main chamber. Wanda only half listened to the Doctor beginning to ponder over an Aplan architect he had met once. The past species having two heads to perfect building design. Then River read a small passage from the book of Angels, muttering with the Doctor and Amy as to what it meant. The Time Lady sighed, wishing she could focus on their discussion but felt her mind constantly in a muddle as it began to become very attentive and alert to her surroundings. The one barrier creaked as it tensed when she heard grating stone off in a corner. Right there, just in the corner of her eye, she swore she saw one of the statues moving its hand as it slowly awoke from its long-awaiting slumber.
Sometime later, the rest of the soldiers, led by Father Octavian, caught up with the small time travelling family. Together, all made their way up the many steps within the catacombs, going to the very top. After a moment of walking amongst many, many statues, River sped up her pace next to the Doctor and Wanda.
"Doctor, Wanda, there's something. I don't know what it is . . .," the woman began to speak to them, sounding uncertain by something.
"Yeah, there's something wrong," the Doctor muttered in agreement as he directed his torch light onto one particular stone figure in front of him. "Don't know what it is yet, either. Working on it." Narrowing his eyes, his gaze hardened as Wanda's 'sneak peek' from earlier ran through his mind once more. Something which he had been analyzing in his head, but for some reason could not get his mind to draw a specific conclusion. What was he missing?
"Doctor, count the heads, remember?" Wanda whispered to him. She jerked her head towards the direction of the statues that surrounded them and the other soldiers. Stone figures that all seemed to be watching the group of people rather closely. Seeming lost for a second, it suddenly clicked in the Time Lord's mind as his eyes lit up in both realization and horror.
"Oh," he breathed. River standing beside them also grew a look of shock and alarm.
"Oh," she agreed in a mumble. Amy scooted closer to the lot, trying to understand what they were going on about.
"What's wrong?" she asked them.
"They forgot to count the heads," Wanda said in a hushed voice, turning her torch to all the statues.
"How could we not notice that?" River grumbled in disbelief, clearly irritated that it had gone right over her head in not noticing to begin with.
"When people are under stress they tend to overlook the simple things sometimes," Wanda mumbled while jerking her shoulders up in a light shrug. "Doesn't really matter at the moment. Either way, we're surrounded now."
"What's wrong?" Father Octavian questioned cautiously as he and his men stopped to stare at the muttering trio in perplexity.
"Nobody move. Nobody move. Everyone stay exactly where they are," the Doctor ordered everyone in strict fashion, pointing a firm finger at everyone to remain still as he himself kept his eyes trained on the statues in front of him. While also trying to keep the others surrounding stone figures in the corner of his eye. "Bishop, I am truly sorry. I've made a mistake and we are all in terrible danger." Octavian appeared to be uncertain now, side glancing at everyone in question for what was going to happen. He glanced at the old, worn statues as well when seeing the way the Doctor was looking at them.
"What danger?" he asked the Doctor.
"The number of heads are wrong," Wanda answered, directing her torch firmly onto a statue in front of her. "The Aplans have two heads. And yet, all the statues in their temple only have one." All of the soldier's eyes widened in alarm as they stared around and saw that the blonde girl was correct. And no one had realized the obvious misplacement within the temple.
"Everyone, over there. Just move, don't ask questions, don't speak," the Doctor instructed the large group, pointing them towards a small corner in the room the tunnel they had been walking through. Moving in quick fashion, the soldiers gathered around, aiming their weapons out, while Amy stared around anxiously, River and Wanda kept their eyes trained hard on all statues, and the Doctor began rapidly thinking of a plan as he gazed around the area.
"Okay," muttered the Doctor. "I want you all to switch off your torches." Wanda did so right away, immediately following the Doctor's orders. Everyone else questioned this and hesitant, not wishing to be in the dark even for a second. But the Doctor remained firm on his instructions, waiting until everyone had turned their lights off. "Okay. I'm going to turn off this one, too," he waved his own still lit torch in his hand, "just for a moment."
"Are you sure about this?" River asked, keeping her voice guarded as she felt uncertain about the Doctor's sanity at the moment. Though, then again, when had he ever been sane to begin with? She stepped up next to Wanda, keeping a firm hand on the Tame Lady's arm in case of something were to happen. River knew, if it came down to it, she would lay down her life for the blonde girl in a heartbeat. The Doctor, too, if things really became bad. However, in River's book, Wanda would always come first. The Time Lady next to the woman assumed River was nervous and simply patted the woman's hand, giving a squeeze to comfort the companion.
"No," the Doctor muttered under his breath, just barely loud enough for all of them to hear. He stepped back, reaching out to take Wanda's one free hand and grip it tightly. He felt her give his hand a squeeze, letting him know that things would be okay. Swallowing heavily, he finally turned off his torch. Only for a hurried blink. The moment he switched it back on, all the statues had turned to face them, with hands reaching out towards the group. Everyone collectively took sharp breathes.
"Oh, my god. They've moved," Amy said, her voice shaking in fear. In an instant, everyone turned on their torches, waving the lights around to stare in alarm at all the many statues around them. The Doctor rushed forward, dragging Wanda along with him as he walked swiftly by each statue, briefly examining them. The others followed in suit, going down the tunnel to come across a statue who had crouched low to the ground and held out a hand in their direction.
"They're Angels. All of them," stated the Doctor, concluding what everyone had been fearing the statues to be. "Every statue in this maze, every single one, is a Weeping Angel. They're coming after us."
"But there was only one Angel on the ship. Just the one, I swear," River spoke, trying to assess the situation as quickly as possible.
"Could they have been here already?" suggested Amy. Humming, the Doctor turned his attention to the group for questioning.
"The Aplans, what happened? How did they die out?" he asked.
"Nobody knows," answered River.
"Well, I guess we know now," Wanda said, staring intently at the many statues in front of them, trying not to blink.
"They don't look like Angels," Octavian commented, sounding almost skeptical of all the statues being Weeping Angels. It almost seemed impossible for there to be that many to him.
"And they're not fast. You said they were fast. They should have had us by now," added Amy, hoping that the Doctor and Wanda were wrong about the statues all being Angels. The very thought scared the companion to the core as she saw how outnumbered they all were.
"Look at them, "the Doctor countered, waving his torch at the stone figures. "They're dying. Losing their form. They must've been down here for centuries, starving."
"And with losing their image, they were losing their power," muttered Wanda. She gripped her torch tightly, glancing at the Doctor. She saw how he still seemed oblivious to what was really happening here. Why exactly the Byzantium had been crashed in the first place. "Doctor, the Angels needed power."
"Yes, and?" he questioned, frowning in puzzlement when seeing the Time Lady's urgent look.
"And now they've got it," Wanda said edgily, indicating with her head towards the ceiling of where the crash site would be located above them. With eyes widening, it finally hit the Doctor on what had been done.
"Power!" he exclaimed, slapping himself on the forehead. He felt like such an idiot for not realizing it sooner.
"What? What is it?" spoke up Amy, wondering what exactly the Time Lords were going on about.
"Don't you see? All that radiation spilling out, the drive burn," the Doctor began rambling on quickly. "The crash of the Byzantium wasn't an accident, it was a rescue mission for the Angels. We're in the middle of an army and it's waking up." The soldiers around tightened their grips on their guns, aiming them more steadily at the statues around them. Amy's eyes widened in horror while River began looking around for an escape route away from here.
"We need to get out of here fast," the woman said to them.
"Agreed," Wanda muttered, backing up to stand closer to Amy and River, wanting to protect the companions from any incoming Angels. She heard Father Octavian beginning to call the soldiers who had been still searching down below in the lower levels. Urgently trying to contact Angelo, Christian, and Bob. Swallowing heavily with a sour taste in her mouth, Wanda straightened her posture and hardened her gaze.
"It's Bob, sir. Sorry, sir," came the reply from Octavian's radio. But Wanda knew that the one speaking truly was not Sacred Bob.
"Bob, are Angelo and Christian with you?" Octavian questioned the young soldier, keeping his tone urgent. "All the statues are active. I repeat, all the statues are active!"
"I know, sir," came the response from the radio. "Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The statues killed them, sir." The Doctor walked up, swiftly grabbing the radio from Octavian.
"Bob, Sacred Bob, it's me, the Doctor," he spoke rapidly to the radio. "Where are you now?"
"I'm on my way up to you, sir," said the voice on the radio. "I'm homing in on your signal."
The Doctor smiled, glad that the young man seemed to be okay. "Well done, Bob. Your friends, what did the Angel do to them?"
"Snapped their necks, sir."
Everyone stiffened either looking perplexed by this or worried. The Doctor blinked in astonishment. That was not right. That could not be how the Angel killed the other two, it did not fit the profile of a Weeping Angel. "See, that's odd. That's not how the Angels kill you, they displace you in time. Unless—."
"Unless they needed bodies for something," Wanda finished for him. She walked up briskly to the Doctor. "Sorry, sweetie, but I can't stand this anymore." Taking the radio from him, she walked away, gripping it tightly in her hand and lifting up close to her mouth as everyone stared at her back in confusion. "Right, now, no more pretending or playing mind games. I know who you really are, Angel. Or should I call you Angel Bob now since you are using Bob's reanimated conscious with his cerebral cortex for your own purposes."
"That's right, ma'am," clarified Angel Bob. Everyone took in a small breath of shock. The Doctor walked up closer to Wanda, gripping on her shoulder as she continued to speak.
"You killed him . . . both him and his friends, not even giving them the decency to live in another timeline," Wanda muttered darkly. She sighed shaking her head. "I'm sorry, Bob. I wish things didn't have to be this way. I let you down by not trying to think of a way to save you."
"Yes, ma'am. I know, ma'am," spoke Angel Bob causally. "I did count to three like you said, ma'am. But you were wrong. It didn't help my fears. Didn't really keep me safe, either. You knew what was going to happen and you let me die."
"I know. I'm sorry," Wanda whispered sadly. Sucking in a breath, she tightened her expression to keep herself from falling into guilt. She looked over her shoulder towards the group behind her and the Doctor. "Right, you lot, get running towards the wreckage. We'll catch up." The soldiers along with Amy and River rushed past the Time Lords, heading in the direction which Wanda had pointed them to. The Doctor gripped her hand as she held the radio in between them for them both to speak to the Angel. "So, you, the Angel of the wreckage, you're planning on killing us all. And that's all fine and dandy, but you know something else?"
"What's that, ma'am?" questioned Angel Bob.
"You won't win. And Bob, you're death won't be in vain," Wanda spoke firmly. "I promise, we'll stop the Angels from hurting anyone else."
"We both promise," the Doctor added in, giving Wanda a reassuring look. He grabbed the radio from her, placing it in his pocket. "We need to go, Wanderer."
"Yeah," she breathed, holding a shaking smile. He gave her a quick kiss, gripping her hand as they ran down the tunnel after their group. Up ahead, they saw Amy standing stiffly in the way, keeping a very tight grasp on stone railing.
"Don't wait for us. Go, run," the Doctor told the girl hurriedly as he ran forward. Only to stop short when Wanda's hand slipped out of his own.
"I can't. My hand—," Amy began to say. But instead of saying more, she cried out in pain as Wanda, in a swift motion, reached down with one hand to grip the companion's arm, bent down, and bit hard on Amy's hand. In a reaction to the pain she felt, immediately Amy let go of the railing and pulled up her hand to her chest, staring in disbelief at the smiling Time Lady.
"There. See? Your hand's not stone. Told you not to look into the Angel's eyes, didn't I? Now they're gonna play mind tricks with you," Wanda told the girl, grasping onto her free hand. "Now, come on, we don't have time. Gotta keep moving." She swiftly grabbed the Doctor's hand as well and pulled both along down the tunnel as the Time Lord's torch flicked from the fast approaching Angels.
"You bit me!" Amy exclaimed angrily as they ran.
"Yeah, well, it was the only way to get you to move," Wanda explained, keeping her voice light. "You're alive. That's something, right?"
"I've got a mark! Look at my hand!" Amy retorted, waving her bitten hand at Wanda.
Wanda huffed in irritated. Some people were just not appreciative of things. "Well, I didn't exactly have time to think of anything else except biting! I could have let the Doctor do it, but that would have wasted time and I'm not patient!"
"Blimey, your teeth! Have you got space teeth?"
"Seriously, Pond? We don't have time for this! I'll get you ice cream or something later to make up for it. Now run!"
Beside the two females, the Doctor was chuckling, finding their small spat to be quite amusing. Oh, how he would not ever let forget the moment of Wanda biting Amy. Just brilliant. Ha!
They finally reached the main chamber right under the wreckage. Far above their heads, they could see the very top of the Byzantium, with small bit of fire still clinging to the broken holes of the ship. The soldiers all had their guns pointed out towards the many tunnels surrounding them. River stood at attention, gazing upward as she seemed to be thinking through on how exactly they were going to reach the ship that was at least thirty feet above them. By now, all torches were flicking on and off. Even the gravity globe was being affected, sending them into milliseconds of darkness each time. Enough time for them to be unable to see and the Angels to advance closer. Essentially, they were trapped.
As the Doctor, Amy, and Wanda joined the group, the lights shut off together for a brief moment then turned back on, showing them Angels on all edges of the corridors and creeping closer.
"Any suggestions?" River asked the two Time Lords. "There's no way up, no way back, no way out. No pressure, but this is usually when you two have a really good idea."
"There's always a way out," the Doctor stated, not focusing on River's worries as he rapidly started forming a plan of action in his mind.
"Everything's going to be fine, River. I promise," Wanda told the woman, giving her a smile. River smiled in return.
"That's reassuring at least," the woman chuckled, aiming her torch around as still kept her guard up just in case something went wrong.
"How is that reassuring? You can't promise that," Amy interjected, keeping close to Wanda as she felt her anxiety spike.
"I always keep my promises, remember?" Wanda countered, giving the girl a pointed look. She grabbed the ginger girl's hand, holding it to comfort the frightened companion. This seemed to ease Amy somewhat as the girl relaxed her tense shoulders.
"Doctor? Can I speak to the Doctor, please?" spoke up Angel Bob from the radio the Doctor still carried. Hurriedly pulling the radio out of his pocket, the Doctor held it up to speak.
"Hello, Angels. What's your problem?" the Doctor asked, keeping his voice light.
"Your power will not last much longer, and the Angels will be with you shortly," stated Angel Bob, sounding completely calm about the whole situation. "Sorry, sir." The Doctor, furrowing his brows, gripped the radio a little tighter in his hand.
"Why are you telling me this?" the Doctor demanded in question.
"There's something the Angels are very keen you should know before the end," Angel Bob explained.
"Which is?"
"I died in fear."
Blinking for a second, the Doctor frowned. "I'm sorry?"
"The Wanderer told me that it was okay to be afraid. That my fears would keep me alive. But she lied. I died afraid, in pain and alone. She made me believe I could live, but she lied." The Doctor gritted his teeth together as Angel Bob continued. "Just like she's lying to you all now. She knows you will all die here as well. I know that she knows for I've heard the stories about the Doctor and his Wanderer of Time. She knows all, and she doesn't even try to help anyone with her knowledge."
Wanda lowered her eyes, trying not to let the words bother her. But they cut deep as she knew it was true. There were many times in the past where she could have stopped the deaths of people and saved them. But she did not because of trying to stick with what was meant to happen and to not corrupt time. Just as she had done so now. People were meant to die sometimes. The moment with Pete's death and so many others had taught her this lesson. Still . . . could she had tried harder to save them? Amy glanced at the Wanda, seeing the troubled expression on the Time Lady, then looked at the Doctor seeing how tightly he gripped the radio with a very angered look on his face.
"What are they doing?" Amy asked River in a hushed tone, wondering why exactly the Angels were telling the Time Lord all of this.
"They're trying to make him angry," River replied in a gruff whisper, her own eyes storming with great agitation. "Though, he's not the only one they've angered." She turned her head, seeing Wanda staring at the ground with her ash-blonde hair hanging in her face. Scooting closer to the Time Lady, River gently rubbed soothing circles on Wanda's shoulder. Wanda did not acknowledge the woman's gesture of comfort as she kept her head down. Looking briefly towards his Wanderer, the Doctor felt his ire boiling even higher in seeing the solemn expression on her face.
"I'm sorry, sir," spoke up Angel Bob once more. "The Angels were very keen for you to know that." Gritting his teeth once more, the Doctor kept his voice low as he spoke next.
"Well, then, the Angels have made their second mistake, because I'm not going to let that pass," he told Angel Bob. "I'm sorry you're dead, Bob, but I swear to whatever is left of you, they will be sorrier."
"But you're trapped, sir, and about to die," countered Angel Bob over the radio. The Doctor walked over to Wanda, pulling her close to him by wrapping an arm around her waist, making certain he had a good hold in her and that they both stood in the middle of the group.
"Yeah. I'm trapped," the Doctor barked in retort into the radio. "And you know what, speaking of traps, this trap has got a great, big mistake in it. A great, big, whopping mistake!"
"What mistake, sir?" queried Angel Bob. The Doctor, lowering the radio to his side, stared at Wanda until she finally lifted her eyes up to meet his. Ducking down, he gave her a brief, reassuring kiss, smiling when her expression lightened somewhat.
"Trust me?" he whispered.
"Always," she replied without hesitation or reserve. He beamed, glad to always have her by his side. And he would not allow the Angels to get away with making her sad. Looking at the other two companions, he raised a brow.
"Trust me?" he asked them carefully. Both Amy and River nodded firmly, seeming ready for whatever he had planned. The Doctor then looked to Father Octavian. "You lot, trust me?" Octavian hesitated for a moment, seeming skeptical as he stared at the Doctor.
"We have faith, sir," he finally answered the Doctor with a nod.
"Then give me your gun," the Doctor instructed him, snapping his fingers to point at the gun on the soldier's hip. Octavian handed it over, watching cautiously as the Doctor examined the pistol. "I'm about to do something incredibly stupid and dangerous. When I do," he let go of his one arm around Wanda to give a bounce upwards for show, "jump!"
"Jump where?" Octavian asked him.
"Just jump, high as you can," the Doctor ordered him and everyone else.
"Leap of faith, Bishop," Wanda added in, seeming to get over her earlier sadness as she held a determined expression. "All of us, we jump together on the signal." She grabbed both Amy and River's hands, preparing herself to leap when the Doctor said. The Time Lord in the middle of the group lifted the pistol up, pointing it directly at the ship hanging above them all. The weapon clicked as it prepared to fire.
"Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned a mistake we've made," Angel Bob spoke up from the radio once again. The Doctor used his free hand to pull the communication device out of his pocket where he had placed it away earlier.
"Oh, big, big mistake. Really huge," he replied to the Angel. "Didn't anyone ever tell you, there's one thing you never put in a trap if you're smart. If you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there is one thing you never, ever put in a trap."
"And what would that be, sir?" Angel Bob questioned.
With eyes flashing, showing the Oncoming Storm brewing away within green irises, the Doctor bared his teeth angrily. "Me."
With that said, a shot rang out, hitting the gravity globe and spilling liquid down towards everyone. And collectively, they all jumped together.
XxXxXxXx
I don't know why, but I always love when the Doctor becomes Mr. Grumpy Time Lord. lol ;) Is it just me? Am I being weird? Probably lol ;) Please let me know what you all thought in a review. Every bit helps me make certain to keep the story growing and developing into better work. And don't worry about making me upset by giving the story some good criticism. Being critical of something definitely helps someone grow in their work. :) Also, I'm very excited for the next chapter. You'll all find out why in the next update. ;)
Reviewers:
Justus80: Oh yes, I think he would, too. lol ;) Mr. Clever is awesome. Glad you liked that part! So sorry for the misunderstanding from your last review. My bad. A movie night would be a wonderful idea for them to have. Maybe something for them to do in the future. ;) Hope you enjoyed the latest chapter! Until next time!
QuirkyKim: Hmm. Not certain on that. Guess we'll just have a wait and see. ;)
heroherondaletotherescue: Really not certain on that. It could be. Or, perhaps, something far worse. Hmm. Welp, I suppose we'll just have a wait to find out in the future! ;) Fingers crossed that you enjoyed the new chapter and that nothing too bad happens to our Wanderer. :D Until next time!
All The Stories Are True 24601: Aww you're being too nice. :) Thank you for such wonderful support through it all. I think the main thing which helped me with keeping up on the mysteries and such is having a timeline and map of Wanda's life planned out from the beginning. Everything that Wanda would go through and what surrounding characters would experience, I had ready in a map of events. It also helps in having most of the story completed from the get-go before I decided to release it onto the site for people to view it. I had both part one and two completed, revised it for about two years, and then finally posted it once I had the courage, too. I was really scared of showing it to anyone. Still am in some ways lol. But I'm so happy that you and many others enjoy it so much! For that's all I really want to do in the end is bring joy to all through writing. :) Though, really I still think this story isn't that good. In fact, I've been slowly working on an edit of part one, then moving onto part two later. I'll post an announcement of when I'll start posting the edits in. :) My health has been very good. Finally feeling normal like I used to. :) Don't worry, I'm not straining myself at all. Hope to talk to you again soon! Take care!
Tina and Maxwell: Oh, trust me, my heart raced, too. Sometimes I just feel so stressed when it comes to the Doctor and Wanda lol ;) But don't worry, they're more than okay now!
Rhiannon: Well, could be that. Or could also be something else entirely. Who knows really. Guess we'll just have to wait to find out. ;) But yes, things are definitely coming full circle. Hope you enjoy!
Momochan77: Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. You never know what will happen. ;) So glad you liked it! And for the new artwork! That was one thing I was very excited about. :D Take care! Until next time!
singingKatelyn: So glad you liked it! As to what's wrong, we'll both just have to find out for later. ;) I hope you enjoyed the newest chapter!
Guest(a): Well, really all I did to get the original images was google features that I was looking for in Wanda. Such as chestnut haired girl/woman. To be honest, I really don't think First Wanda's picture is even around anymore. Though I know Third Wanda's is floating around still. None were from any official source as they were nothing more than stock photos. Hope that helps! :)
ajwehri: Yay! I'm so happy you like them! :D As well as the new chapter. Hmm. That's a good question. Could be that, or something else entirely wrong with her. Guess we'll find out later won't we? ;)
alwaystherereading: She could be. Or not. There could also be something else happening to poor Wanda. We'll never know until later I suppose. As for mystery girl, she just another strange occurrence all together. As for an end for Wanda and all that . . . I'm just gonna say spoilers for now. But don't worry, I'm certain things will turn out all right. Maybe? I don't know. Here, have a cookie for now to ease your worries. lol ;) So happy you're liking it so much! Until next time!
bored411: Not certain what he found. Guess we'll just find out for later. ;) Though, I think it might be much later, unfortunately, before we find out the full truth. Hope you don't mind the wait!
N7SpaceHamster: Sarah! Same goes for you, too! :) Ooh, I'm much looking forward to a vacation. Only a short one for me, but any days off to relax will be bliss. You're very welcome! It always bothered me in the past in seeing such a lack of communication between writers and readers. So that was one thing I told myself I would do: always keep communication clear and there for fun. :) This way no one feels as though they don't have a say in the story. I'm really glad that more and more writers are doing the same now. For this story, unfortunately, it will only be going up to the end of season 7. As for the 12th Doctor, that will actually be for another story I have planned after this one. A sequel, if you will, to the Wanderer Series. The episode really is odd. Though, I feel like most of the things Clara had to go through with the Doctor were just plain strange. Even for his usual adventures. haha I like mad Wanda, too. She's just so fun. Glad you liked the changes in the adventure. This third part of the series will definitely have a variety of moments where things change from the main episode plot. So there's something you can look forward to. ;) First Wanda would definitely behave much like that. It really is great to see such character growth, isn't it? Sometimes people don't go out with a bang, but a whimper. Or, in Mr. Clever's case, more of a tantrum. Man, your theories are just so amazing. I wish I could say more to all your thoughts, but I'd be afraid I would give away too many spoilers lol ;) Hope the cliffhanger wasn't too bad. It's safe to confirm that, yes, something bad is indeed on the horizon for them. Guess we'll just have to wait together to find out. Happy Thanksgiving to you, too! Until next time!
Whovianeverlark17: Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. :) I believe you're right. Something sad did probably just happen. Hmm. Well, spoilers for now I suppose. Hope to see you again for the next adventure! Take care!
Warm hugs for everyone! :D Can't wait until next time! See you all very soon!
~Tinker~