Now that there was a plan in place, the whole family was finally able to get some sleep. Nicholas, Molly, and Tatiana switched off staying awake to guard the door – even locked, there was a chance the Khaynens could get in again, and Molly didn't want to take any chances. Still, she was able to grab a few hours sleep between shifts, and she had the feeling the Romanovs had all needed the sleep too.

The next morning, Molly pulled Maria aside and asked her to lead her to the kitchen. The pathologist didn't know her way around the house, and she'd need help carrying everything back to the room. Besides, Maria seemed the most friendly with the guards, even if she was forbidden to speak to them anymore. She'd attract the least attention, for now.
The Grand Duchess led her quickly to the kitchen. They were only stopped by one guard, who was quickly fended off by Molly's status as a government worker. Once there, they made straight for the ice. One little factoid she'd forgotten about the time period was that the refrigerator hadn't become mainstream yet. Large blocks of ice were kept in an old-fashioned icebox. They had to chisel away chunks of it small enough to carry away, using large buckets found in the kitchen that were then filled with water.

Collecting enough water took several trips that were spaced out throughout the day to keep the guards from getting suspicious. Even so, they were questioned several times about transporting buckets of water to and from the kitchen, but each time Molly waved it off or coldly told them to get lost. It worked, but Molly got the feeling her authority was rapidly wearing thin.

Over the course of the day, they were able to gather eight full buckets of ice and water, sometimes going back to the kitchen to get more ice when what they had had melted. By evening, they had eight ice-cold buckets of water, with each Romanov and Molly tensed and ready to reach one and throw it's contents at the nearest alien. Even Aleksei had a bucket hidden beside his wheelchair, ready to be reached at a moment's notice. They were ready. All that was needed now was the aliens.

Nicholas and Molly went once again to the Grand Duchesses' room. Taark was sitting on one of the cots, flipping nonchalantly through a book. He looked up with an eyebrow raised. "Yes, miss Hooper?" he asked airily.

"You said you can call your family from here?" The crown prince smirked and nodded. "Then do it, now. Tell them to meet us in the Tsar's room."

Taark shook his head. "I can't make a call that specific," he told her. "All I can say is something like, 'Come now, danger.' They'll get the idea better if I make it from the right room."

Molly shook her head. "This room's close enough. We'll leave you here, and when they get here, lead them into the Tsar's room."

The Khaynen nodded. "Fair enough." He paused, mouth opening slightly, throat constricting, though no sound came out. After a few moments he shook his head slightly. "There. Humans don't seem to be able to hear it, so it'll just be the family coming. You better be ready, miss Hooper." There was a mocking light in his eyes. Molly knew he thought he was two steps ahead of them. She could only hope her plan worked, or else they were dead, because no matter what she could never give them the TARDIS.

Molly nodded. "Good. Just wait in here 'til they get here, then." Though her voice stayed even, she felt a tremor of fear in her heart. She was risking all of their lives, and subsequently the fate of the universe, and now her plan couldn't be stopped no matter what. They were coming, and they could only pray her plan would work.

SCENEBREAK

She and Nicholas retreated back into his room, where the rest of the family waited. They slipped quietly back into their positions, Molly filing in between Maria and Alexandra. They formed a line in front of the bed, each with a bucket hidden behind them, easily reached and hidden from sight. Molly only hoped she was right about their effect on the Khaynens.

Maria gave the pathologist a weak smile, eyes glittering with worry. Molly knew the family was placing their lives in her hands, even though they barely knew her. Add to that the alien nature of the threat and it was no wonder they were scared. Without a word, she reached out and grabbed Maria's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

They weren't kept waiting long. Only a few minutes had passed when they heard the turn of the doorknob from the room beside them, and the sound of hushed voices. Molly tensed, feeling Maria's grip on her hand become viselike.

After a few moments, the door before them began to open slowly. One by one, the Khaynens filed in, all in black, scaly form. Taark was the last in, six of his fellows before him. He closed the door, leaving them trapped in a room with seven Khaynens.

There was a long, tense silence. Molly could hear a slight whimper from Maria, and she could see fear in the eyes of all the Romanovs, even Nicholas, though he tried to hide it. Molly felt her heart pounding hard, not from fear for herself, but for the family she'd dragged into this battle.

Finally, one of the Khaynens spoke, head lowering as her gray gaze swept almost lazily over the family. "Which of you is leader of these humans?" The alien's voice was higher, female, with a cool, confident edge to it. She watched them unblinkingly, head swaying ever so slightly in an almost reptilian fashion.

Molly snuck a quick look at Nicholas, who after all had once been Tsar of the largest country in Europe. He noticed her glance and dipped his head slightly. Giving her the authority. Acknowledging her right to it. Swallowing back the last of her uncertainty, Molly stepped forward, staring firmly at the Khaynen. "I am," she told them coolly.

The Khaynen's gaze fixed sharply on Molly. In an almost bored tone, she told Molly, "I am Shira, Empress of the Khaynen race. My son Taark tells me you have an offer we would be foolish to pass up. Please tell me I am not wasting my time with this."

Molly took a moment to compose herself, then slowly began, "I am a companion of the Doctor." She saw a ripple pass through the group of Khaynens, a low hiss at the sound of their prisoner's name. After observing their reaction warily a moment, she continued, "We've come here to offer you a deal. We're rather fond of Earth, you see, and we'd rather not see it taken over by a bunch of renegade aliens. So we're here to offer you transport off Earth. We have a ship that can take you anywhere in the universe, somewhere you can make a fresh start. But first, you have to tell me where the Doctor is."

Shira narrowed her eyes, a sharp edge to her voice as she told Molly, "We do not require a fresh start. We require our planet, and the forces necessary to recapture it."

"Your planet?" Molly repeated in surprise. The real story began to fall into place for her. "Wait, so you're not here to help your planet capture mine, you're here to use mine to get yours back. You're here alone, and you're going to use the human race as soldiers in your war." She'd thought they were trying to capture Earth for its own sake, but all they wanted humans for was soldiers. She hadn't realized the family was working for itself rather than for its race. "Is that what this is about? Reclaiming your throne? Using the Earth as soldiers in some long and pointless coup?"

The Empress let out a noise like a snort, lips pulling back to show sharp teeth. "Don't think you can sway me with lectures of morality. I will have as many humans killed as it takes to give us our throne back."

The pathologist narrowed her eyes slightly at that, but decided to leave it for now. "Alright. How about your people, then? Hmm? Humans may be scum or stupid apes or whatever you want to call us, but how many Khaynen lives are you willing to go through to get your bloody throne back?" She shifted her gaze to each Khaynen in turn, even as they stared stonily back at her. "If you do this, you'll be causing the deaths of plenty of your own species. Is that really what you want. A long, bloody climb to the top?"

Shira let out a hiss, eyes flashing dangerously. "I want my throne back," she hissed fiercely. "I want my power back, and I want my planet back. And I don't care who has to fall to get me there." She turned to her son, letting out a sharp snarl. "You were foolish to cooperate with these humans, Taark. They have seen too much, and they must die." The Romanovs flinched back at her words, eyes all flicking to Molly.

Taark stared evenly back at his mother, wearing the same smirk he'd used on Molly. "Their offer had merit, Mother," he said coolly. "With their ship we can take over any planet we want, planets far superior to Shyklen. We can be rulers of far greater worlds."

"That is not for you to decide," Shira rebuked sharply. A low growl rumbled in her throat as she bared her teeth at her son, who had the good sense to flinch slightly away. "Our family willbe returned to our rightful place in Shyklen. I am still the Empress, the ruler, and you willobey my authority."

"Your authority," Taark spat scornfully, "was taken away by the rebels of Shyklen. You're nothing but a deposed ruler. Perhaps it's time for youth and ingenuity to come to power."

Shira jerked her head back, growl rising in volume. She and Taark faced off with bared teeth and sharpened claws, tension sparking between them. Molly felt like they were minutes from going for each others' throats. The rest of the Khaynens didn't interfere. They just stood and watched as two members of their family got ready to battle it out. Molly felt sick at the idea. What kind of family was that?

She took a single step forward, raising her voice sharply. "Enough!" The two Khaynens looked at her, still ruffled but tempers slightly cooled. In a more normal tone, she continued, "Alright, you don't care about the people you hurt. How about yourselves?" She grew solemn, her tone becoming sharper, more dangerous. "See, the Doctor and me, this is what we do. We stop people like you. Defending the Earth, protecting innocents, that sort of thing. And we're not going to let you take over Earth. We'll stop you, whatever it takes, and you'll be left with nothing. Do you really want that? I'm offering you a way out."

The mood of the Khaynens went from aggressive to amused, teeth all pulled back to cruelly amused grins. "Stop us?" Shira repeated scornfully. "How? The Doctor is our prisoner."

Molly felt a surge of anger at their flippancy, on top of their treatment of her friend. "Then I'll stop you," she shot back without hesitation. "Whatever happens next is your own fault if you don't listen to me now. I'm offering you an out. Will you take it?"

Shira eyed Molly with cold amusement, a low growl thrumming in her chest. "Never," she hissed. "Earth will be ours, and no human will stand in our way." She and her fellows began slowly advancing towards the Romanovs, teeth bared and growling. "And now, it is time for you to die, the first of many to fall for our victory."

Molly knew they couldn't wait any longer. "Now!" She and the Romanovs whirled around to grab their buckets, hurling the contents at the Khaynens. There was a horrible sizzling sound, and several shrieks and screams of pain as the cold water made contact with their scales. To Molly's surprise, all seven Khaynens began rapidly changing, scales fading into human flesh and horns into hair. In a matter of moments, where seven Khaynens had once stood, seven humans were crumpled on the ground. But not just any seven humans.

Nicholas took a shaky step forward, eyes wide with horror. "They're... they're us," he breathed in shock.

The seven Khaynens had all taken the forms of the members of the Romanov family. Molly was pretty sure it was Taark who had become little Aleksei sprawled on the floor, and the others had become his sisters and parents, mirroring the family down to the clothes they were wearing. All were unconscious, moaning quietly in their sleeps, still shivering from the family's attack. All but one.

Molly was pretty sure it was Shira who was glaring at her from the ground, wearing the body of Alexandra Romanov. "You tricked us!" she hissed furiously. The Empress tried to stand, but was barely strong enough to rise to a kneeling position. After a few moments she gave up, settling for glaring at Molly.

The pathologist stared at the family in utter confusion. This was not something she had expected. "What...?" She looked down at Shira, eyes wide. "Why did you change into the Romanovs?"

Shira let out a frustrated hiss. "It was a rushed job," she explained ruefully. "We used the closest DNA we could find, and the room's filled with theirs'. But that's easily fixed." She paused a moment, brow furrowed in concentration, but nothing happened. Her eyes widened. "I've no heat left to change. You stole my energy. I can't change!" Her voice rose with panic.

Molly scrambled to get her thoughts back in order. Her plan had failed, they hadn't all been knocked out, and even in her weakened state Shira was too dangerous to bring into the TARDIS. Plus, they still didn't have the Doctor's location, so he couldn't go get the TARDIS and park it inside. They had no way of getting the Khaynens into the ship, and no way of searching for the Doctor while two sets of Romanovs could be discovered.

Shira suddenly lifted her head, a shrewd light in her eyes. "Leave," she rasped.

Molly blinked in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"I said leave," the Empress repeated. "You wanted a deal? Leave now, and we won't come after you again. And take the Romanovs with you. We can't have our doubles wandering around." She suddenly smirked, confidence burning in her tone as she added, "These are the bodies of the rightful rulers of Russia. We can bring them back to power without the help of the Bolsheviks. Our plan is still in place, we'll just edit it slightly."

Molly froze, horror and relief at war in her head. There was a way out for the Romanovs. Impossible and dangerous as it was, they had a way out. She could really, truly save them. But if she did, she would be abandoning the Khaynens to a horrible, brutal death, unable to warn them.

She took a few steps forward, voice low, both hating and needing her next offer. "Shira, I'm giving you one more chance. Leave with me now, you will be stopped."

Shira shook her head stubbornly. "Do your worst," she hissed.

That settled it. Guilt still burned in Molly's chest, but she had this one, horrible chance to save an innocent family, and she was taking it. "Fine. We'll leave. We give up. Just tell me where the Doctor is, and give me back his sonic screwdriver."

Shira told her where he was and tossed the metal rod towards Molly, who picked it up quickly. She gave the pathologist a queer smirk, cruel and condescending. "For all your talk of stopping us, look at you now, running. We will win the Earth, human. Just be glad we allowed you to live."

Molly felt a pang of guilt. "You can try," she whispered.

Done with the Khaynen, she turned to the terrified and confused Romanovs. "We're leaving here, now. Don't ask any questions. Leave Aleksei's wheelchair, just go to the girls' room and wait, I'll be back soon, just don't let anyone see you, okay?"

Nicholas looked at Molly with wide eyes. "What's going on?" he asked in a slightly shaken tone.

Molly looked at him for a moment, allowing her a bit of hot through her guilt. "You're escaping," she told the Tsar with a slight grin. Then she turned and hurried out past the door. She had to get to the Doctor before it was too late.

Did you guys see that coming? I feel like that was too easy to see coming. But whatever, it's late and I'm too tired to think about it anymore. And yes, I've been planning this from the beginning.

Thanks to everyone who wished me luck for my awards ceremony. I got a Journalism award for working on the newspaper for three years, the last of which I served as both Features Editor and Co-Editor-in-Chief. My newspaper teacher was on stage and gave me a book, and I gave him a hug. He's one of my favorite teachers, and it was really sweet, but now I'm getting all sad because I've had his class since I was a sophomore and now I'll probably never see him again. :(

Anyway, I graduate tomorrow, schedule should clear soon and updates should be quicker. There's one more chapter to this episode, then back to canon episodes.