Day of the Doctor - Part 2
The small group of Time Lords and Clara followed Elizabeth down a hall to what appeared to be an almost underground room where a Zygon base was set up. There were quite a few working away at some machines set up before rather large 3D oil paintings, "The Zygons lost their own world," the queen stated, "It burned in the first days of the Time War. A new home is required."
"So they want this one?" Clara frowned.
"No," the 7th Mac shook her head, "If they wanted this one they'd have taken over now."
"Yes," the queen agreed, "Earth is far too primitive at the moment. Zygons are used to a certain level of comfort."
"Commander," one of the Zygons stopped when they spotted her, "Why are these creatures here?"
"Because I say they should be," her eyes narrowed, "It is time you too were translated," she nodded at the machines and the Zygon growled but walked over to where a small glass cube was resting on a pedestal, "Observe this. I believe you will find it fascinating."
They turned to watch as the Zygon, upon resting its hand on the cube was then sucked into the painting, reappearing as the shadowy figure in the meadow painting.
"That's him!" Clara blinked, "That's the Zygon in the picture now."
"Not a picture exactly," the 9th Mac remarked, "Time Lord art makes it more like a stasis cube, those glass cubes there. It's more a frozen moment of time."
"Bigger on the inside," the War Doctor agreed, "But could be deployed as..."
"Suspended animation," the 10th realized, "Oh, that's very good. The Zygons all pop inside the pictures, wait a few centuries till the planet's a bit more interesting, and then out they come."
"You see, Clara," the 11th began, "They're stored in the paintings in the Under Gallery, like Cup-a-Soups. Except you add time, if you can picture that. Nobody could picture that. Forget I said Cup-a-Soups."
"Do we really choose to be HIS Chosen?" the 7th Mac looked at her future self, "Were we under duress?"
"Is it really that hard to believe we might one day overcome our issues?" the 10th Doctor frowned at her.
"Sometimes," the 7th admitted.
Clara frowned and looked between them, "Hold on…you're NOT Chosens right now?"
It won't happen for a few years more Clara," the 9th Mac told her, "For them at least. And I do believe we have more pressing concerns to deal with than the state of our relationships," she gave the past Time Lords a look, "Right now the Zygons are waiting to conquer the world from the past."
"Right, yes," the 10th Doctor nodded, glancing at Elizabeth, "And do you know why I know that you're a fake? Because you're such a bad copy. It's not just the smell, or the unconvincing hair, or the atrocious teeth, or the eyes just a bit too close together, or the breath that could stun a horse, it's because my Elizabeth, the real Elizabeth, would never be stupid enough to reveal her own plan. Honestly, why would you do that?"
"Because it's not my plan," the queen said dryly, "And I AM the real Elizabeth."
"Prove it," the 7th Mac eyed her.
"How?"
The 9th Mac sighed and pulled her small pocket knife out of her pocket, handing it to her, "Your blood will be a very dark red if you're the Zygon."
Elizabeth shook her head, "I have my own thank you," she lifted her skirt and pulled out a jeweled dagger instead from a garter on her leg, using it to prick her finger and show them the bright red blood, "Proof enough?" she glared at the 10th Doctor.
"Ok," he rubbed the back of his neck in discomfort, "So...backtracking a moment, just to lend some context to my earlier remarks..."
The queen rolled her eyes, "My twin is dead in the forest. I am accustomed to taking precautions," she waved the dagger around, "These Zygon creatures never even considered that it was me who survived, rather than their own commander. The arrogance that typifies their kind."
"Zygons?" Clara frowned.
"Men!"
"And you actually killed one of them?"
"I may have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but at the time, so did the Zygon," the queen smirked, holding her head up high before turning to the 7th Mac, "The future of my kingdom is imperilled. My Lady Mackenzie, can I rely on your service and that of your unified taskforce?"
"You can," the 7th Mac nodded, "This is what they train for, but UNIT only exists in the future."
"Then we'll need my TARDIS," the 10th Doctor remarked.
"It has been procured already," the queen nodded, making him smile before she smirked, "But first, I do believe there was a promise to keep between the two of you?" she looked at the 7th Mac and 10th Doctor.
"What…what promise was that?" the 11th Doctor frowned, he and the 9th Mac looking equally confused.
"A wedding of course," Elizabeth grinned.
~8~
As it turned out, at some point, Elizabeth had begun to think that all of the 7th Mac's utterances against the 10th Doctor, of all his crimes and ill-doings and shortcomings were more her own jealousy coming out and had endeavored to see what she claimed to be a loving couple married. She was entirely convinced that the 7th Mac had said it all because she had been trying to drive Elizabeth away from the 10th Doctor out of her own love for the man and refused to give them access to the TARDIS until they were wed.
Literally.
They were now standing before a minister, the War Doctor and Clara on one side, the 9th Mac and 11th Doctor on the other, with Elizabeth behind them…and her guards surrounding them, two of which had their pikes aimed dangerously close to the wedding couple's backs.
"Oh dear, dear, dear," the 9th Mac murmured.
"What?" the 11th Doctor looked at her as the minister proclaimed the duo husband and wife…the soldiers prodding them gently to kiss.
"Our entire relationship was even more out of order than I thought," she smiled a bit, "We were married before we were Chosens, before we even began to court," she glanced at him, "Before you even began to try and woo me."
He had to smile as he watched the two kiss, seeming to kiss just a bit longer than if they truly had no future together, "Suppose it was the Universe's way of making amends for the muck up the first time around."
"We didn't remember it though," she reminded him.
"But now we do," he smiled at that, thinking on it, she was his wife now apparently, not just his Chosen.
"Is there a lot of this in the future?" the War Doctor called over to them.
"It does start to happen, yeah," the 11th Doctor sighed, "But we tend to try and limit it to just Kenzie," he took her hand.
"God speed, my protectors," Elizabeth smiled.
"We'll be right back," the 10th Doctor promised, "And help you clean up the whole Zygon mess in your basement. Give us a call if you ever need our help," he winked at her before taking the 7th Mac's hand and running for the TARDIS before the woman could insist they head to their honeymoon or something.
He quickly unlocked the door and let them all in, the group rushing to the console…right when he started to bang it with a mallet.
"Stop that!" the 7th Mac huffed, grabbing it from him.
"You've let this place go a bit!" the War Doctor looked around at the 10th Doctor's console room.
"Tell me about it," the 7th Mac huffed, "He refuses to let the TARDIS pick the desktop."
"Ah, it's his grunge phase," the 11th Doctor offered, "He grows out of it."
"Don't you listen to them!" the 10th patted the console…only for an alarm to go off, the console sparking as a light flashed and the room was suddenly different. The walls were white with round circles cut into them, "Ooh! The desktop is glitching."
"Five of us from different time zones, it's trying to compensate," the War Doctor frowned.
"Hey, look, the round things!" the 11th pointed at the walls.
"I love the round things," the 10th Doctor grinned.
"What ARE the round things?"
"No idea."
The 9th Mac shook her head, "They're the roundels," she reminded them, "They're meant to be covers for the circuitry or even storage compartments," she looked at the 11th Doctor, "This is why you should have kept the manual."
Before he could respond an alarm went off and the Time Lords all rushed to a different section of the console to help, Clara moving over to the monitor as it was the simplest area for her to stand and try to help.
"Oh, dear," the 9th Mac murmured, "It's the friction contrafibulator."
The 11th Doctor grabbed lever and pulled it, making the TARDIS glitch once more before settling into the most current version of the console room, the one he and the 9th Mac travelled in with Clara, "Ha! There! Stabilized."
"Oh," the 10th Doctor looked around, "You've redecorated! I don't like it."
"I like it more than yours," the 7th Mac countered.
"Listen," the 11th Doctor rolled his eyes, "We don't have time. We've got to get back to the National Gallery, the Zygons are underneath it…"
"No," Clara shook her head, "UNIT HQ, they followed us there in the Black Archive…" she trailed off as the Doctors looked at her in stunned alarm while the Macs closed their eyes and shook their heads, "Ok...so you've heard of that, then."
"We were the ones who TARDIS proofed it," the Macs said at once as the men looked at them.
"You TARDIS proofed the Black Archive?!" the 11th Doctor gaped at the 9th Mac.
"Why would you DO that?" the 10th stared at the 7th Mac.
"Because knowing you, you'd go swooping in there and end up setting off the nuclear warhead buried under it!" the 7th Mac huffed, crossing her arms.
The 9th Mac winced at that. She'd been a part of helping tighten the security measures of the archive. She'd tweaked their memory loss portions, SHE had been the one to ensure it would be TARDIS proof. In her anger she'd been all too keen to do anything to keep the Doctor OUT of UNIT.
"We can still contact them," she tried to offer, looking at her Doctor, "I made sure they wouldn't touch the Space-Time Telegraph."
The 11th Doctor sighed and nodded, turning to the controls to try and connect it back to that device he'd given the Brig.
"…would destroy London?" someone who sounded like Kate began to speak over the comms as he tapped into it.
"To save the world?" a second Kate spoke, "Yes, I would."
"You're bluffing."
"You really think so? Somewhere in your memory is a man called Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart. I'm his daughter."
"'Science leads,' Kate," the 11th called out at that, "Is that what you meant? Is this what your father meant?"
"Doctor?"
"I told you not to ever disable the Space-Time Telegraph, Kate," the 9th Mac stepped beside him, "This was why."
"The Doctors know about the Archive," the 7th Mac rolled her eyes, "We've had to tell them about the security protocols."
"Kate, please, please, tell me you are not about to do something unbelievably stupid!" the 11th Doctor called out.
"I'm sorry, Doctor, Agent Mackenzie," Kate sighed, "Switch it off."
"Not as sorry as you will be," the 10th tried, "This is not a decision you will ever be able to live with."
The TARDIS shook, "What part of TARDIS-proof did you not get Doctor!?" the 7th Mac snapped before rushing to another control to try and pilot the box away from any more foolhardy attempts to get it to land in a room it couldn't enter.
"I said switch it off!" Kate hissed to someone.
"Kate, please," the 9th Mac pleaded, "Listen to us a moment sweetheart…"
But the comms went to static.
"We need another way in," the 10th turned to the Macs, "You both made it this way, you must know some way to get us to land there."
"We don't need to land," the War Doctor cut in.
"Yeah, we do, a tiny bit. Try and keep up."
"No, we don't. We don't. There is another way," he picked up the stasis cube that he'd nicked from the Zygons, "Cup-a-Soup!" he grinned as the other Doctors shared his smile, "What is Cup-a-Soup?"
"No time," the 11th clapped him on the shoulder, before rushing to the phone and calling the scientist they'd passed in the gallery before.
But the 9th Mac snatched the phone from him, "Agent McGillop," she greeted the moment it was picked up, "Agent Mackenzie…" she blinked, "Yes, I know, we were just there, talking to Kate. Time Travel, keep up, right now I'm ordering you to have the portrait of Gallifrey Falls transported to the Black Archive. No questions asked, just do it."
The 11th Doctor looked around at them as she hung up, "Ready?" he swallowed hard, looking at the group as they nodded.
~8~
The TARDIS flew out of the portrait of Gallifrey Falls moments after a Dalek went flying out of it, shattering the glass as it exploded. It landed just off to the side of the room, the doors being thrown open as the Macs and Clara ran out to see the Doctors stepping out of the portrait. The men had gone out there to break the glass while the Macs stayed inside with Clara to pilot the box out, not sure if they'd be able to go back into the picture to get it out later.
"Hello," the War Doctor greeted the humans and Zygons already in the room. There were two sets of Kates, Osgoods, and McGillops standing there on either side of a table, the nuclear countdown ticking away between them, set into the wall.
"I'm the Doctor," the 10th smiled, knowing that they already knew who Mac was as she'd worked for them.
"Sorry about the Dalek," the 11th winced.
"Also the showing off," Clara mumbled.
"Glad you agree he's got an enormous head," the 7th Mac murmured.
"Hush," the 9th Mac stepped past them and walked towards Kate, "Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, have you any idea what on earth you're doing?!"
"The countdown can only be halted at my personal command," one of the Kates spoke, "There's nothing you can do."
"Really?" the 7th Mac crossed her arms, "We've worked for UNIT for how long and you don't think we can't work out a way around this?"
"Easy," the 10th Doctor nodded, "We make you both agree to halt it."
"Not even for five of you," one Kate shook her head.
"You're about to murder millions of people," the War Doctor frowned.
"To save billions. How many times have you made that calculation?"
"Once," the 11th frowned, "Turned me into the man I am now. I'm not even sure who that is any more."
"You tell yourself it's justified," the 10th agreed, moving to the head of the table, "But it's a lie."
"Because doing what he did," the 7th Mac shook her head, "It was wrong and all it did was cause endless suffering for others."
The 9th Mac glanced at the War Doctor to see him looking near Clara but not quite at her, more to the side at something else.
"And because I got it wrong..." the 11th nodded, "I'm going to make you...get it right."
The two Doctors grabbed a chair over to the end of the table and sat down, crossing their feet up on the table and crossing their arms across their chests in unison.
"How?" Kate scoffed.
"I could order you," the 7th Mac mused, "My authority goes above even yours."
"But it's not YOUR voice print," Kate reminded her, with Time Lords and how often they regenerated, how their voices changed, they couldn't risk making Mac's voice the key, "And I wouldn't follow that order anyway, you wouldn't be able to reprimand me later either if it goes off."
"Any second now, you're going to stop that countdown," the 10th Doctor spoke up, "Both of you. Together."
"Then you're going to negotiate the most perfect treaty of all time," the 11th agreed.
"And we'll make sure it's fair for ALL of you," the 9th Mac spoke, returning her attention to the other Doctors.
"And the key to perfect negotiation..." the 11th Doctor smiled.
"Blurring the lines of whose side you're on," the 7th Mac crossed her arms, "You forget Kate, I was the one who tweaked the memory wipes."
"So," the 11th Doctor cried as he and the 10th jumped onto the table before them, "For the next few hours, until we decide to let you out..."
"No one in this room will be able to remember if they're human," the 10th whipped out his sonic.
"Or Zygon," the 9th Mac finished as the men flashed their sonics at the memory wipes, making the memories of all the humans with a duplicate there erase their species from them.
"Cancel the detonation!" both Kates shouted a moment later just as the clock reached 5 seconds.
The 11th Doctor grinned and slipped his sonic away, "Peace in our time."
~8~
The two Macs stood side by side before the TARDIS looking at the Kates and McGillops and Osgoods discussing things with their Zygons, the Doctors nearby to help, but their gazes were locked on the youngest yet oldest version of him as he spoke to Clara, "Do you think they realized," the 9th Mac wondered, "That he hasn't done it yet?"
The 7th Mac sighed, "Has he gotten less oblivious with age?"
"No."
"Then I doubt it," she shook her head.
It was all too obvious to them that the War Doctor hadn't used the moment yet, they could see it in his eyes, eyes that weren't nearly as haunted as their own Doctors' were. They didn't know why he was there, perhaps it was like at Lake Silencio, he had to see the future to know it would happen. They weren't sure but they couldn't for the life of them think of what they could do or say to the man about the situation. Well, they both knew what they'd say, and it would be vastly different. One would say don't do it, don't kill them, and the other would just tell him one day she'd understand and that it was for the fate of the entire universe. So they both kept silent, what happened now was going to happen no matter what and they…they didn't want to be an influence in it. One because she knew saying not to do it wouldn't matter, he'd do it anyway and she'd be a failure for stopping him. The other because saying she understood might make him more inclined to do it and then it would be on her that she'd encouraged him to do it and she just…she wasn't as strong as the Doctor was, if it were HER choice she wouldn't have been strong enough. Perhaps, in the grand scope, it had been a blessing to him to lose his family the way he had, he'd had nothing tying him to the planet, nothing holding him back from destroying it all like she did.
"Doctor?" Clara called, jumping up from where she'd been sitting, "Mackenzie!" she looked around, "He's gone! I don't know where he went!"
"Probably off into space," the 11th Doctor sighed.
"I didn't stay around very long after I used the Moment," the 10th agreed.
"No but…" Clara shook her head, "He hasn't yet. He hasn't used the Moment!"
"What?!" the men glanced at each other, before they took off to their individual TARDISes. The other TARDIS, the 11th Doctor's, had been carted in upon order by Kate to rest there. The Macs ran after them, knowing what their Doctors would try to do and for once not knowing whether they should support them or stop them.
~8~
The two TARDISes set down at the end of a small barn on a planet near Gallifrey, the Doctors and Macs and Clara stepping out to see the War Doctor standing before the moment. It was an intricate box with clockwork pieces designed into the sides, a pipe sticking out with what looked like a metal flower on top, a big red button resting on it, ready to push. It was said that the Moment possessed a consciousness and could decide who to destroy or who to save and was only to be used in the most dire of straits like now. And there he was, ready to push it, ready to wipe out all life on and around Gallifrey.
"I told you," Clara breathed, "He hasn't done it yet!"
"Go away now, all of you," the War Doctor called, not even taking his gaze off the button, "This is for me."
"You stupid old Doctor," the 9th Mac shook her head fondly as they approached, "You think you'd ever let yourself alone at a time like this? You hardly listen to me half the time, I doubt you'd even listen to yourself."
"These events should be time locked," the 10th Doctor glanced around, "We shouldn't even be here."
"So something let us through," the 11th reasoned.
The Macs glanced to the side, to a large crate when the saw the War Doctor's gaze flicker to it, "Go back," the man pleaded, returning his attention to the button, "Go back to your lives. Go back to your Chosens, take them away from here and go be the Doctor that I could never be. Make it worthwhile," he reached out to put his hand on the button.
"All those years," the 10th Doctor murmured, looking at the War Doctor with a frown, "Burying you in my memory."
"Pretending you didn't exist," the 11th breathed, "Keeping you a secret, even from my Chosen."
"Or trying to," the 7th Mac countered, she and the 9th Mac standing across from the War Doctor while the other Doctors stood on either side of him.
"Pretending you weren't the Doctor," the 10th swallowed, "When you were the Doctor more than anybody else."
"You were the Doctor on the day it wasn't possible to get it right," the 11th looked at him.
"But this time..." the 10th took a breath and put his hand on the button too.
"You don't have to do it alone," the 11th agreed, resting his on top of the others'.
"Thank you," the War Doctor breathed, tears in his eyes.
"Mackenzie?" the 10th looked at her the same time the 11th asked, "Kenzie?"
But both Macs, with vastly different expressions, shook their heads, "Don't you DARE ask me to be a part of this," the 7th nearly hissed, tears in her eyes, her jaw clenched, disgusted at the thought that they could even think to ask her to have a hand in murdering her own family.
The 9th Mac just had a sad expression on her face, tears in her eyes as she wrung her hands, "I can't do it," she whispered, "I'm not strong enough. My…my family's down there."
"I'm sorry," all three Doctors murmured, recalling that, the 10th and 11th wincing as though they should not have asked.
"What we do today is not out of fear or hatred," the 10th began, "It is done because there is no other way."
The 9th Mac closed her eyes and stepped away, not able to look, not wanting to watch it happen. She had accepted that it HAD to happen, but she couldn't bear to see it.
"And it is done in the name of the many lives we are failing to save," the 11th finished with a look at the 7th Mac who turned and stormed off across the room from her future self, both women on opposite ends. He bowed his head, and shook it, catching sight of Clara in the corner of his eye, the girl on the verge of tears as she looked between the three men and then to the two other upset women, "What? What is it, what?"
"Nothing," Clara sniffled.
"No. It's something. Tell me!"
"Doctor," the 9th Mac shook her head, and moved over to Clara, putting an arm around her, "What's wrong sweetie?"
"It's just…" Clara tried to blink back her tears, glancing at the Doctors, "You told me you wiped out your own people. How…how Mackenzie's family were…" she swallowed hard, not wanting to bring it up with the women right there, "I just... I never pictured you doing it, that's all."
The room suddenly started to darken, a sort of projection forming around them of the planet, of the Daleks firing, the people running, the blasts going off all around them.
"What's happening?"
"The Moment is projecting the present," the 7th Mac swallowed, "I saw this," she murmured, "Just as the shuttle was taking off, it flew past…this…exactly this…" she took a breath, watching as families were torn apart and knowing, somewhere out there, her shuttle had just taken off with her screaming at the controls and tearing out wires to try and stop the autopilot.
"These are the people you're going to burn?" Clara gasped.
"There isn't anything we can do," the 10th Doctor said helplessly.
"He's right," the 11th swallowed hard, "There isn't another way, there never was. Either I destroy my own people or let the universe burn."
Clara looked at the Macs, one with her head bowed, not wanting to watch, not wanting to relive what she'd come to terms with, the other looking half livid that she couldn't interfere and half confused at what was being said about the Universe being at stake, "Look at you... the three of you. The warrior. The hero. And you," she turned to the 11th Doctor.
"And what am I?" the 11th shrugged.
"Have you really forgotten?"
"Yes. Maybe, yes."
"We've got enough warriors, any old idiot can be hero."
"Then what do I do?"
Clara smiled, "What I'd guess Mackenzie wanted you to do from the start," she offered, "Be a doctor! She told me the name you chose was a promise. What was the promise?"
"To never be cruel or cowardly," the 9th Mac murmured, the group watching as there was a lull in the battle, the families taking a chance to rush to each other again.
"And to never give up, never give in," the 7th Mac finished, "And you're failing, you always failed at that…DON'T fail now."
The 10th Doctor ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up, when he caught sight of his future self's thoughtful expression as he stared at his future Mac, "You're not actually suggesting that we change our own personal history?"
"We change history all the time," the 11th murmured, "I'm suggesting something far worse."
"What, exactly?" the War Doctor frowned.
The 11th Doctor kept his gaze on his Mac though, "Trust me?"
"Yeah," she nodded.
"Bet your life?"
"Always," she smiled, seeming to see something in him the others weren't.
He grinned, kissed her quickly, before he spun around with a wide smile, his arm around her shoulders, "Gentleman, I have had 400 years to think about this. I've changed my mind," he flicked the sonic at the Moment, closing it up.
"There's still a billion billion Daleks up there, attacking!" the War doctor cried.
"Yeah, there is, there is."
"But there's something those billion billion Daleks don't know," the 10th Doctor slowly started to realize something as his Mac moved to stand beside her future self and ask her something, his Mac…and a future Mac…TWO Macs…
"Cos if they did, they'd probably send for reinforcements," the 11th nodded, pointing at his last incarnation, seeing him grasping it.
"What?" Clara asked, "What don't they know?"
"This time, there's THREE of us."
"Three TARDISes," the 9th Mac corrected since there were only 2 of her.
"Oh!" the War Doctor's eyes widened, "Oh! Oh, yes, that is good! That is brilliant!"
"Oh, oh, oh!" the 10th cheered, "I'm getting that too, that is brilliant!" he jumped up and ran to his Mac, hugging her tightly, delighting in how she hugged him back this time, working it out too, working out exactly what they could do to not only maintain the timelines…but SAVE Gallifrey in the process!
"I've been thinking about it for centuries!" the 11th beamed, "Even more since we found Kenzie! Oh you're always a well of inspiration dear," he beamed at her.
"She didn't just show me any old future," the War Doctor laughed, tears of joy in his eyes, "She showed me exactly the future I needed to see!"
The 9th Mac blinked at that and looked at the War Doctor, "Who? Who showed you what?"
"Oh, Melody Pond, I could kiss you!"
The 9th Mac and 11th Doctor stared at him, "Did…did you say Melody Pond?" Mac breathed.
"Oh no, um," the War Doctor chuckled sheepishly, "The um…interface…"
"A woman with curly space hair?" the 11th Doctor asked urgently.
"Yes…how did you know?" the War Doctor stared at them.
"It took the form of our daughter?" the 9th Mac breathed, though she couldn't help but think it was fitting, River was always the one who knew, perhaps there was something about the interface, some part of the 'consciousness' that had latched onto the one hidden in the Library. Either way it made her hearts swell to know that, in some way, their daughter had been able to help save their planet as well, had helped save her father from that guilt of what he'd done, save her mother from the pain of that loss.
The past her spun at that, "Our what?!"
"Did you say daughter!?" the 10th gaped, "OUR daughter as in…as in…us?" he gestured between him and Mac.
"How?"
The 9th Mac and 11th Doctor glanced at each other a moment before smiling, "Spoilers," they said as one, laughing as though they'd shared a joke.
But the joke was NOT lost on the past pair as the glanced at each other, not sure if they were saying 'Spoilers' as in a literal spoiler that they couldn't say or as a hint that…that maybe River Song was…and there WAS that comparison of River-Song and Pond-Melody…but…it couldn't be…could it?
"So what are we doing?" Clara cut in, knowing how touch a subject River Song was for her Time Lords, they'd told her about it, after the time tunnel, about River and her other aliases, how she'd come to be, and while she was so touched they'd shared that with her, she had seen how much it pained them to do it, "What's the plan?"
"The Dalek fleets are surrounding Gallifrey," the War Doctor picked up, knowing that, no matter how badly he wanted to know how he and Mac had a daughter when she couldn't have children, he NEEDED to focus on this. And besides, he'd live it one day, "Firing on it constantly."
"Yes, um," the 7th Mac shook her head, trying to gather her thoughts, "We built the sky trenches, we know they'll hold out to the bitter end…but if the planet just disappeared, what then?"
"Tiny bit of an ask?" Clara frowned.
"The Daleks would be firing on each other," the 10th Doctor explained, "They'd destroy themselves in their own crossfire!"
"Gallifrey would disappear," the 9th Mac breathed, "It would look like it was destroyed by the Daleks, all the Daleks there would destroy each other, and the universe would be none the wiser."
"But where would Gallifrey be?" Clara frowned.
"Frozen!" the 10th Doctor started to grin, the plan looking more and more solid, "Frozen in an instant of time, safe and hidden away."
"Exactly!" the 11th pointed at him.
The War Doctor chuckled, "Like a painting."
"Well then, come on!" Clara rushed back to the TARDISes, "No time to waste!"
~8~
The 9th Mac was hunched over at the monitor of the TARDIS, the 11th Doctor with her, trying to tap into the transmissions from Gallifrey. Whatever it was that had allowed the War Doctor to come see them, that had allowed the two other TARDISes to land and speak to him only moments before he used the Moment had helped them once again in allowing them to come BACK to Gallifrey while it was still drifting in space, even while in the middle of the final siege of it. They were there, right now, three TARDISes hovering above the planet. Her 7th self was with the 10th Doctor, but Clara had volunteered to go with the War Doctor for now, not wanting the man to be alone in this while his future selves had someone. She was so focused on trying to tap into the transmissions she failed to see the gleeful smile on the Doctor's face as he typed some other command into the console from the other side, his eyes on her and the rotor, just beaming despite the seriousness of what they were about to do.
Had she looked, she would have known instantly it had little to do with the fact they were about to SAVE the planet and not destroy it.
She frowned in concentration, managing to send a new message that the War Doctor had requested, 'Gallifrey Stands' and was just starting to get a staticy picture coming through on the monitor of what looked like the war rooms of Gallifrey.
"…ould he do that?" one of the military officials was saying, the audio kicking in, "What's the mad fool talking about now?"
"Hello!" the Doctor rushed over the second she looked up to alert him to the fact that she'd patched them in, knowing a hologram of himself and Mac would appear in the War Rooms, "Hello, Gallifrey High Command, this is the Doctor speaking with my Chosen, Mackenzie!"
"Hello," she laughed at their utterly terrified looks, knowing they'd realized it was a FUTURE Doctor talking to them.
Just across from them they could see another hologram flicker on of the 10th Doctor and 7th Mac's faces, "Hello!" the 10th greeted, "Also the Doctor. And Mackenzie, though um, not my Chosen yet…um, just my wife," he smiled at the 7th Mac.
That Mac just rolled her eyes, "Are you reading us?" she focused on the mission at hand.
But before the generals could answer, another holographic window popped up with the War Doctor and Clara, "Also the Doctor standing ready with Miss Clara Oswald."
"Oh my god they're Time Lords!" Clara gaped, "What are you wearing?"
The Doctors chuckled at that, their laughter growing bigger as the general in charge just stared and said, "Dear God, three of them! All my worst nightmares at once!"
"General, we have a plan," the 10th Doctor spoke.
"We should point out, at this moment, it is a fairly terrible plan," the 11th added.
"And almost certainly won't work…"
Both Doctors were quickly quieted when their Macs both made the 'stop talking' gesture and turned to the Genera, "We're going to fly three TARDISes into the lower atmosphere," the 9th Mac explained, the women taking over for a moment.
"If we position them at equidistant intervals around the planet it should work," the 7th Mac added.
"We're just about ready to do it," the War Doctor warned as the TARDISes moved into position.
"Ready to do what?" the General called.
The 11th Doctor smiled softly, "We're going to freeze Gallifrey."
"I'm sorry, what?!"
"Using our TARDISes," the 10th nodded, "We're going to freeze Gallifrey in a single moment in time."
"You know, like those Stasis Cubes?" the War Doctor supplied, "A single moment in time held in a parallel pocket universe."
"But on to the whole planet," the 7th Mac nodded.
"And save everyone on it," the 9th smiled, feeling her hearts beating rapidly at the thought that they could save her family and so many others. She felt so badly for the Doctor, that his family wouldn't be saved, but they had died so early in the war, and this…what they were doing, how they were going to make it appear the planet was destroyed for history's sake…it had to be in the final moments of it.
"What?" the general scoffed, "Even if that were possible, which it isn't, why would you do such a thing?"
"Because the alternative is burning," the 11th Doctor swallowed hard.
"And I've seen that," the 10th murmured, absently reaching out to take the 7th Mac's hand, the woman allowing it and even squeezing his hand back.
"And I never want to see it again," the 11th finished, "I don't want to force my Chosen to suffer through that again."
The 9th Mac smiled softly at him for that, for his concern, before she leaned in to kiss his cheek.
"We'd be lost in another universe," the General frowned, "Frozen in a single moment. We'd have nothing."
"Hope," the 9th Mac murmured, "You'd have hope."
"Something you don't exactly have in spades right now do you?" the 7th Mac agreed.
"It's delusional!" the General cried, "The calculations alone would take...hundreds of years."
"Oh, hundreds and hundreds," the 11th Doctor nodded.
"But don't worry," the 10th grinned, "I started a very long time ago!"
They could see Clara laughing and grinning widely when almost a dozen other holographic windows opened up and every single previous Doctor appeared in them, the sensors picking up all of them flying in to help them from different points in time.
"You might say, I've been doing this all my lives!" the 11th laughed.
"I didn't know when I was well off!" the General seemed like he was caught in a nightmare at that, "All 12 of them!"
The 9th Mac frowned when she spotted it, another holographic window appearing, a 13th Doctor, and turned to the 11th in shock, but his head was bowed as he put in the commands the others were all working on, it seemed like only she had seen the man and his eyebrows before the War room was hit with a blast and jolted about so much that she lost sight of the other windows but knew they were still there. How was that possible though!? That there was a 13th Doctor there given the regeneration the current one was on?
She had little time to think on it though when the soldier beside the General cried out, "Sir! The Daleks know that something is happening. They're increasing their fire power!"
"Do it, Doctor," the General ordered, "Just do it. Do it!"
The three Doctors looked at each other, the monitor split in 4 sections, one for each of the other's faces, one for the planet, and the last for the war room. The 11th Doctor nodded, "Ok, gentleman...we're ready," he took the 9th Mac's hand, "Geronimo!" he turned and threw up a switch.
The 10th Doctor mirrored his actions, but with a shout of, "Allons-y!"
They could hear Clara laughing as the War Doctor grumbled, but joined in, "Oh, for God's sake! Gallifrey stands!"
And so they stood and watched as the TARDISes created a field around the planet, growing larger and brighter and expanding until it finally exploded, encompassing them all in a blinding white light as the Dalek ships around them exploded…
~8~
The Time Lords and Clara had regrouped in the National Gallery, the Under Gallery more specifically, where the portrait of Gallifrey Falls had been placed back in what they assumed was its natural place in the hidden section of the museum. They were all sipping tea, the three TARDISes set up along the side of the room. After they'd done whatever it was they'd done the other Doctors had disappeared, likely back to their original timelines, leaving the three Doctors and 2 Mackenzies with Clara to return.
"I don't suppose we'll ever know if we actually succeeded," the War Doctor remarked as they all stood and sat, looking at the painting, dropping lump of sugar into his tea, "But at worst, we failed doing the right thing, as opposed to succeeding in doing the wrong."
"Life and soul, you are," Clara remarked.
The 7th Mac smiled at her though it was a sad one, "I like you Clara."
"Me too," the 9th Mac agreed.
Clara watched as the 10th Doctor put an arm around the 7th Mac tentatively and the man seemed nearly surprised when she leaned into him quickly, when she wound an arm around his waist as well, and rested her head on his shoulders. There were tears in her eyes though that seemed to be confusing the 10th Doctor as they were sad tears and not the happy ones that should have come with saving the planet. She supposed it could be because, if they didn't know if they succeeded, they still didn't know if her family was alive.
But…looking at the 9th Mac, the 11th Doctor took her hand and squeezed it and she gave him such an apologetic look, a sorrowful and guilty one, that she was almost confused when that Mac didn't pull her hand away, she couldn't think of a reason why both women seemed so sad and sorry when their planet could very well be safe.
"What is it actually called?" the 10th Doctor asked, trying to distract them all, and Clara could tell both men were quite concerned with how their Macs were acting. From what she'd seen it wasn't like either of them.
"Well, there's some debate," the 11th sighed, she knew THAT sound had come from him wanting to discuss with Mac what was wrong and his opportunity being taken, "Either No More or Gallifrey Falls."
"Not very encouraging," the War Doctor remarked.
"What I want to know is how it got here," the 9th Mac murmured.
"And why were we informed it was here," the 7th agreed, still quite putout that UNIT hadn't told her art about HER planet existed.
"No idea," the 11th Doctor shrugged.
"There's always something we don't know, isn't there?" the 10th smiled.
"One should certainly hope so," the War Doctor nodded, before pushing himself up, "Well, gentlemen, ladies, "It has been an honor," he shook the 10th Doctor's hand, "And a privilege," and the 11th.
"Likewise," the 10th nodded.
"Doctor," the 11th winked.
"And Mackenzie," the War Doctor looked between them, before switching to Gallifreyan, "I am so blessed to have been able to see you again Naery," he gave them a deep smile, "And to know that one day, we shall be Chosens and married," he chuckled, "It will give me hope till I can become the men they are," he gave a soft nod to the other Doctors, stepping up to hug both women at once, but his smile grew sad as he pulled away and looked at them, his hands taking one of their own, "I won't remember this will I?"
"No," the 9th Mac offered him a sorry smile.
"The three of you being here," the 7th added, "What the Moment's interface allowed…it threw the timelines out of sync, it would be impossible for you or even my Doctor and I to retain it."
"Ah, well," he let out a sad breath, before turning to say goodbye to one more person, "If I grow to be half the man that you are, Clara Oswald, I shall be happy indeed."
"That's right," Clara laughed, "Aim high!" she stood and gave him a hug, kissing his cheek.
The War Doctor took a deep breath and turned to head to his TARDIS, only to pause and look at the Time Lords once more, "I won't remember that I tried to save Gallifrey, rather than burn it," he mused, "I'll have to live with that. But for now, for this moment...I am the Doctor again. Thank you," he smiled at them once more before stepping into his TARDIS and disappearing.
The 10th Doctor sighed as he watched the box fade away, "And we won't remember either," he looked at the 7th Mac as she looked down, "We won't remember that your family's alive," he murmured to her."
"I know," she swallowed hard, her voice shaking.
The 10th Doctor knew that he should talk to her about this about what was wrong, but…they'd forget, the moment they entered the TARDIS and left, it would be a blank to them, they'd likely remember how they'd been looking for a Zygon in Elizabeth's court and the queen was enamored with him, how Mac had said so many comments she'd nearly thought he was an enemy of the crown…he couldn't guess if he'd remember the queen's sudden revelation that the reason Mac was saying all that HAD to be (in her mind) because Mac wanted him for herself. He really didn't know, that had happened so close to when the other him and her had fallen into the portal that he wasn't sure when the timelines would stop. They'd probably end up thinking they'd run for their lives or something. So it would truly be pointless to try and talk now when all of it would be erased, though he hated seeing her so sad.
"So," he looked at the 11th Doctor, just wanting to get off the subject, "You might as well tell me."
"Tell you what?" the 11th frowned.
"Where it is we're going that you don't want to talk about."
The 11th hesitated and looked at the 9th Mac, "He won't remember anyway," she agreed.
He sighed, "We saw Trenzalore..." he told himself, "Where we're buried. We die in battle among millions."
The 10th Doctor was silent a moment, glancing at his Mac questioningly, fully expecting her to have some remark about 'him? In a WAR? Actually fighting instead of running away?' but she was silent. So he cleared his throat and looked back at the future thems, "That's not how it's supposed to be."
"That's how the story ends," the 11th shrugged, "Nothing we can do about it. Trenzalore is where you're going."
"Oh, never say nothing," he gave a small smile, before shaking both their hands, not feeling comfortable kissing or hugging anyone who wasn't HIS Mackenzie, "Anyway...good to know my future is in safe hands," he smiled at Clara, "Keep a tight hold on it, Clara."
"On it," Clara smiled and stood, shaking his hand too.
"I'm glad to know I'm still here," the 7th Mac offered too, looking at her future self, "With you," she glanced at the 11th Doctor and then her Doctor, "Doesn't seem like you'll ever run away from me now, eh?"
He smiled at her, "Never ever," he gave the future thems a nod before heading to their TARDIS, "Trenzalore," he murmured as Mac unlocked the door, "We need a new destination, because...I don't want to go."
The 7th Mac looked back at them sadly before they got into the TARDIS and it too faded out of existence.
"He always says that," the Doctor murmured, turning to look back at the painting.
"Need a moment alone with your painting?" Clara asked, seeing the two growing silent.
"If you'll be alright for a moment?" Mac glanced at her.
"Course I will," Clara smiled, nodding as she headed back to the TARDIS, leaving them to their thoughts.
"What's wrong?" the Doctor asked, glancing at Mac, "I saw that look the two yous had, what is it?"
Mac sighed, "I just can't help thinking, and I'm sure the other me thought it too that…we were SO horrible to you," she looked up at him, "We were so terrible and we blamed you and we hated you for destroying Gallifrey, for…for killing our family…and all that time they might be alive."
"It's not your fault," he tugged her closer, hugging her as he saw tears in her eyes, "Kenzie…NONE of us knew it survived, we ALL thought I'd actually destroyed it, that I'd burned it. I really did think I killed them all, I can't blame you for thinking it too."
"I should have known though," she murmured, "That it wouldn't have ever happened, that something else had to have happened because YOU…" she looked up at him, "You're the Doctor and you wouldn't have EVER destroyed our planet, all those children. I should have known or thought that there was something else going on."
"I wasn't the Doctor during the war though," he reminded her, "That Doctor fought and killed and broke the promise, that man wasn't a Doctor, or I didn't think he was. Kenzie," he lifted her chin a bit more, stroking her cheek, "I really don't blame you. I forgave you for all of that after we dealt with Rassilon, just like you forgave me. This…changes nothing."
"The other me will forget," she whispered, "She'll forget all of this and she'll still blame you though, till Rassilon."
"And I'll still blame me too," he agreed, "It really won't change the past, and that's it. It's in the past. The future though…THAT we can change."
She smiled, "You don't…hate me for being so cross with you, now that you know you didn't destroy Gallifrey?"
"I could never hate you Kenzie," he promised her, "I rather think I love you," he smiled, tapping her nose.
"I love you too," she smiled.
"Good," he leaned in to kiss her, his lips just barely brushing hers when the door to the TARDIS opened again.
"Oh, sorry!" Clara called, smiling sheepishly at having interrupted them, "I just remembered, there was an old man looking for you when I went to make the tea. I think it was the curator. Carry on," she winked and disappeared inside the box again.
"I could be a curator," the Doctor mused, thinking about that.
"Appears I AM a curator," Mac remarked, recalling Elizabeth's letter, "You can be my assistant curator."
"Ooh I'd be great at curating," he started to nod, imaging it, "I'd be...the great curator. I could retire and do that. I could retire and be the curator of this place with you!"
"You know, I really think you might," a voice said from behind them. They turned slowly to see a man who looked a great deal like the Doctor's fourth incarnation, but as an old man, standing there with a cane, grinning at them, "The boss sent me down," he winked at Mac.
"I never forget a face," the Doctor eyed him.
"I know you don't," the curator nodded, "And in years to come, you might find yourself revisiting a few but just...the old favorites, eh?" he made his way over to them, "You were curious about this painting, I think. I acquired it in remarkable circumstances. What do you make of the title?"
"Which one?" Mac smiled at that, "No More, or the Gallifrey Falls one?"
"Oh, you see, that's where everybody's wrong. It's all one title. Gallifrey Falls No More. Now, what would you think that means, eh?"
"That Gallifrey didn't fall!" the Doctor blinked, "It worked. It's still out there."
"I'm only a humble curator," the man gave them a small smile, "I'm sure I wouldn't know."
"Do you know where it is?" Mac asked him.
But he sighed, "Where is it indeed? Lost perhaps."
"Oh dear," Mac frowned at that, thinking of all the places it could possibly be in the universe…and that was quite a few.
"Things do get lost, you know," the man shrugged, "But um," he smiled at her, "They always have a way of finding a way home, don't they?" he saw the Doctor smile and take Mac's hand, the two smiling at each other at the hidden meaning in his words, they'd found each other too, "Now you must excuse me. Oh...you have a lot to do."
"Do we?" the Doctor looked back at him, "Is that what we're supposed to do now? Go looking for Gallifrey?"
"Oh, it's entirely up to you. Your choice. I can only tell you what I would do, if I were you...oh...if I were you..." he laughed, "Perhaps I WAS you, of course. Or perhaps... you are me."
"Yeah!"
"Congratulations," he shook the Doctor's hand.
"Thank you very much."
"Or perhaps it doesn't matter either way. Who knows? Who...knows?" he tapped the side of his nose, "As for you my dear," he took Mac's hand and kissed it, "Do enjoy your journey with your new companion," he winked at her before turning to walk away.
"Oh dear, dear, dear," Mac let out a breath, her smile starting to fall, "We were within range of Gallifrey!"
"Yes?" the Doctor started to smile.
"We were so focused on saving the planet I completely forgot to designate myself as a pilot!" she looked at him before letting out a breath, "I suppose, if we should find Gallifrey again…maybe then I could…" she trailed off, seeing him starting to chuckle, "What? What's so funny?"
He tapped her nose, "You are," he told her, "You know, I'm quite a good multi-tasker," he began, "I DID have a moment to spare when we reached the planet, while you were hacking into the transmissions to the war room…"
"Theta…" she looked at him, "Are you saying…"
"I designated you as a pilot," he nodded, "You're officially a pilot now."
"So that means Clara…"
"Is your official companion," he beamed, hugging her tightly, "Congratulations to you too."
"Oh," she laughed at that, never having thought she'd get this change, "Oh my…" she beamed at him in return, "Thank you Theta," she hugged him again.
"It was my pleasure Naery," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her hair, "Now, I believe a certain Oswald has some news to receive yes?"
Mac just laughed and took his hand, hurrying with him back to the TARDIS, to her now-official companion.
~8~
"Clara sometimes asks Kenzie and I if we dream. 'Course I dream of Kenzie,' I tell her, it makes Kenzie smile widely to hear that though Clara rolls her eyes like that wasn't what she meant. 'Everybody dreams,' I amend. 'But what do you dream about?' she'll ask. 'Adventure,' Kenzie will say, 'Journeys. Life. I suppose what everyone dreams of, where they want to go, where they're going.' She always laughs at that. 'But you're not going anywhere, you're just wandering about.' That's not true. Not anymore. Kenzie and I have a new destination. Our journey is the same as yours, the same as anyone's. It's taken me so many years, so many lifetimes, but at last I know where I'm going, where I get to go with my Chosen, where we've both always been going. Home...the long way round."
A/N: My apologies -sigh- My entire fault this was late, I stayed up way too late last night, slept through my alarm and was nearly late for work so I was just scrambling. I just got home about 15 minutes ago and I'm uploading the chapters now, sorry!
As for this chapter...aww the interface was River :') I was SO tempted to have her visible in the story but I wanted that surprise moment to be at the end :) I can't believe the story will be over in only 2 days! O.O So soon!
Some notes on reviews...
The interface was River :)
Mac was the one to TARDIS proof it yup, so they sort of know what's coming for the Doctors trying to break in :)
I'm glad you like the 'dear' thing, that'll sort of be her thing for this incarnation. And I'm really glad you felt that seeing the cover, I wanted that to sort of be a discomfort Mac feels being around humans so much :) It'll be awkward now, but adorable with 12 :)
I've actually got a tentative spin-off in mind for TL7 that would give us more background on her and what she's doing while the Doctor's series is progressing. But I can't say what it is till after TL7's been posted just to see if anyone's interested ;)
The Doctor married his wife on Gallifrey, as for when, we'll have to wait and see when the next story starts :)