Ok, here's part 2. Something is itching me about this chapter, but I hope it's turned out ok. We've got a bombshell coming; an answer to one of so many questions!
A reviewer asked if I was going to have Ember encounter the 13th Doctor. This fic was partially written ages ago, way before that Doctor, and was meant to end at a certain point. It's too late to change that now unless I rewrite the whole thing.
However, where I originally planned to have four parts in this saga, I might extend it to go further in the series, which would go as far as the 13th Doctor. I can't promise this, as it's way too early to do so, but I'll be thinking about it. I've certainly had a few ideas about Ember's encounters with the future Doctors.
Anyways, on with the chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter Twenty Seven: The Satan Pit
She was beyond angry. She was incensed!
How dare he think he had the right to do this! After everything she'd done, all the things she was planning to do, he was just going to ruin it all? For fun?!
"How dare you!"
"I dare," he replied, his low tone dark with a hint of malice. "Are you not curious? These little things you want to see, would it not be fun to see them squirm?"
"I will not have everything go to waste just to amuse you!"
"So what will you do? I know that you will not destroy me."
"I never said I'd destroy you; that would be too easy. I've got a better idea." Her smirk made him nervous for the first time ever...
"Ember? Can you hear me? Come on, wake up!"
Ember slowly drifted back into consciousness, hearing Rose calling to her. She slowly opened her eyes to find herself on the floor of the drilling room. "Wha...?"
"Oh, thank God, you're ok!" Rose said in relief, helping the brunette sit up. "Are you alright? You really scared me back there!"
Ember put a hand to her head with a wince. It was still throbbing, but not as much as it had been. "Yea, I'm fine. Just a massive headache. Remind me to ask the Doctor for some painkillers later."
"Oh! The Doctor!" Rose jumped up and ran to the abandoned radio, holding it to her mouth and pressing the button. "Doctor? Doctor, can you hear me? Doctor, Ida, are you there?"
"Open door 25."
Everyone looked at the door in fear as the computer announced its opening, Jefferson and the female guard preparring to shoot. Instead of any Ood, however, Danny was the one who appeared and closed the door behind him.
"It's me! But they're coming." He said, panting. "It's the Ood. They've gone mad."
Ember looked to where she last saw the Ood, her hearts twisting in sympathy as she saw the corpses that remained.
"How many of them?" Jefferson asked.
"All of them! All fifty!"
"Danny, out of the way. Out of the way!"
Danny looked scared as Jefferson and the other guard pushed him aside and approached the door. "But they're armed! It's the interface device. I don't know how, but they're using it as a weapon!"
He was ignored, and Jefferson opened the door. Right on the other side, an Ood reached out with its orb and pressed it against the forehead of the female guard, her scream short as she was killed swiftly. Jefferson was quick to shoot the Ood before closing the door. "Seal door 24! Seal door 23!"
"Jefferson, what's happening there?" Zach called through the comm.
"I've got very little ammunition, sir. How about you?"
"All I've got is a bolt gun. With uh... all of one bolt. I could take out a grand total of one Ood. Fat lot of good that is."
"Save it." Everyone looked at Ember when she said that, puzzled. "We'll need it later."
Jefferson briefly wondered what she was talking about, but thought better than to bother right now. "Given the emergency, I recommend Strategy Nine."
"Strategy Nine..." Zach barely took a second to think about it. "Agreed. Right, we need to get everyone together. Rose? What about Ida and the Doctor? Any word?"
Rose shook her head. "I can't get a reply. Just nothing. I keep trying, but it's-"
"No, sorry, I'm fine." The Doctor's voice suddenly called back. "Still here."
"You could've said, you stupid-"
Ember flinched at not only the static feedback, but the choice of word Rose used. No wonder they didn't let that be heard in the show.
"Whoa. Careful!" The Doctor teased. "Anyway, it's both of us. Me and Ida. Hello! But the seal opened up. It's gone. All we've got left is this... chasm."
"How deep is it?"
"Can't tell. It looks like it goes down forever."
"The pit is open." Rose murmured. "That's what the voice said."
Zach paused. "But there's nothing. I mean... There's nothing coming out?"
"No, no." The Doctor replied. "No sign of the Beast."
"That's because it's already out." Ember winced as the pain in her head flared a bit, but then dulled. "At least, a part of it is."
"It said Satan." Rose said, apparently not hearing her.
The Doctor tried to pull her away from those thoughts. "Come on, Rose. Keep it together."
"Is there no such thing? Doctor, Ember? Doctor, tell me there's no such thing."
Ember put her hand on Rose's shoulder, finally able to stand up without feeling like she was going to fall over. "Easy, Rose. Everything gets an idea from somewhere. There's always a tiny stem of truth in every fable, even if it's warped and much more different than the original."
"Ida?" Zach called from the control room. "I recommend that you withdraw. Immediately."
"But, we've come all this way..." Ida tried to argue.
"Okay, that was an order. Withdraw. When that thing opened, the whole planet shifted. One more inch and we fall into the black hole. So this thing stops right now."
"But it's not much better up there with the Ood!"
"I'm initiating Strategy Nine, so I need the two of you back up top immediately, no ar-" There was a fizzle to indicate that the comm had been shut off. "Ida? Ida!"
Rose blinked. "What happened?"
"Ida turned off the comm." Ember said. "She and the Doctor are now weighing their options. It's ok. They'll be back in a minute."
As if on cue, the comm crackled to life again almost a minute later, and the Doctor spoke. "Rose, we're coming back."
"Best news I've heard all day." Rose replied with a smile, only for it to drop when she saw Jefferson point his rifle at Toby, who looked terrified. "What're you doing?"
"He's infected." Jefferson said, his weapon trained on the young man. "He brought that thing on board. You saw it."
Rose moved so that she was between the armed man and the scared Toby. "Are you going to start shooting your own people now, Is that what you're going to do? Is it?"
"If necessary."
"Well then, you'll have to shoot me, if necessary, so what's it going to be?" Rose knelt beside Toby. "Look at his face. Whatever it was, it's gone. It passed into the Ood. You saw it happen. He's clean."
"And what about your friend?" Jefferson jerked his head in Ember's general direction, making the brunette falter. "She passed out the moment it turned up. Maybe it's trying to take over her too."
Ember bit her lip, and then moved so that she was standing beside Rose. She really didn't like that a gun was pointed at her now, but she understood their doubts. "I don't know if that's the case, but if it turns out to be that way, I'll tell you right now: If I show any sign of being taken over - red eyes, roaring or alien symbols on my face - then you have my permission to put me out of my misery on the spot. Until then, back off. Got it?"
A long moment passed, and then Jefferson slowly lowered his weapon. Ember let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "Any sign of trouble, I'll shoot them."
Rose let out a breath of her own as the older man turned away, and then she turned to face Toby. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah..." Toby replied, then shook his head. "I don't know..."
"Can you remember anything?"
"Just... it was so angry. It was fury and rage and death. It was him. It was the devil."
"Come on." Rose gently hugged the young man, trying to offer comfort. When she pulled away and straightened to go back to the comm, Toby made to follow her only for Ember to intercept him, her back facing the rest of the group.
"I know you're still in there." She said, her voice lowered so that she wasn't heard by the others. "And I know what you're planning. This is your one chance: stop."
For a moment it looked like she'd gotten it wrong, but then 'Toby's eyes turned red. He leaned down so that the others didn't see the change, and spoke in the deep voice. "If you tell them, I will kill them all. I don't need them to survive in order for me to leave."
"Yes, you do. You may be powerful, but you don't know how to fly a rocket. You need someone to live long enough to get you out of here."
Those red eyes regarded her thoughtfully, making her shiver. "Then perhaps we could come to an... arrangement. If you step aside, I will let you live. I will even stop the pain you've been feeling since you set foot here..."
The way he said that - like he knew already - made Ember pause, realisation dawning. "You've been causing my headaches."
"The boy is weak, but you... together, we could be so much more..."
Ember held her ground, though it was pretty scary to see those eyes up close, especially when they were raking over her like a lion stalking prey. "Your tempting isn't going to work on me. But I'll give you this one bit of advice: If you try to escape, you won't like how it turns out."
There was a stab of pain in her head as he smirked at her, not showing any outward sign of surprise by her rejection. "And how are you going to stop me? You are not nearly strong enough yet to destroy me with your flames."
"I never said I'd be the one to destroy you." Ember replied, her words similar to what she'd said in her dream. "I'm just giving you that one chance. Take it or leave it: up to you."
She turned away then, but 'Toby' saw her eyes flash completely silver for a split second, his own eyes widening at the sight. By the time Ember had reached the others and looked back, Toby was normal again, apparently ignorant of the whole thing.
"Okay, we're in." Ida called over the comm, bringing her back to the present. "Bring us up."
Jefferson set the controls ready. "Ascension in three, two, one..."
Suddenly, the power went out. As if that wasn't enough, the deep voice they'd heard before - from the Ood and - echoed from the dark.
"This is the darkness. This is my domain." The monitor flickered, the image changing to that of several Ood staring at them with red eyes and speaking as one. "You little things that live in the light, clinging to your feeble suns which die in the end..."
"That's not the Ood." Zach's voice cut in "Something's talking through them."
"Only the darkness remains."
Zach chose to speak up again. "This is Captain Zachary Cross Flane of Sanctuary Base Six, representing the Torchwood archive. You will identify yourself."
"You know my name."
"...What do you want?"
"You will die here. All of you. This planet is your grave."
"It's him." Toby whispered, looking petrified. "It's him. It's him..."
"If you are the Beast, then answer me this. Which one, hmm?" The Doctor said, challenging the dark voice. "Cos the universe has been busy since you've been gone. There's more religions than there are planets in the sky. The Archiphets, Orkology, Christianity, Pash Pash, New Judaism, San Klah, Church of the Tin Vagabond. Which devil are you?"
"All of them."
"What, then you're the truth behind the myth?"
"This one knows me as I know him... The killer of his own kind."
The Doctor chose not to acknowledge the jab. "How did you end up on this rock?"
"The Disciples of the Light rose up against me and chained me in the pit for all eternity."
Ember winced as her headache throbbed slightly harder for a moment. It was like there was something on the edge of her consciousness, bristling at the words as though in recognition. It felt like she should know this...
"When was this?" The Doctor asked.
"Before time."
"What does that mean?"
"Before time."
"What does before time mean?"
"Before light and time and space and matter. Before the cataclysm. Before this universe was created."
"...That's impossible. No life could have existed back then." Ember blinked at the hesitation. Why was he not sounding as sure as he'd been on the show?
"Is that your religion?"
"It's a belief."
"You know nothing. All of you, so small. The Captain, so scared of command. The soldier, haunted by the eyes of his wife. The scientist, still running from Daddy. The little boy who lied. The virgin. And the lost girl, so far away from home. The valiant child who will die in battle so very soon."
Rose's voice was shaking as much as her hand as she raised the comm. "Doctor, what does that mean?"
"Rose, don't listen."
"What does it mean?"
"You will die and I will live."
Ember tilted her head. "You left me out of your little monologue. Who am I to you then?"
There was a pause, long enough to her to visibly shiver like ice had brushed against her nape, and then the voice came back, strangely hesitant, as though it wasn't quite sure what it was seeing. "You... who command the flames and the waves, the wind and the earth... Such power, but there is a rage inside you, waiting to be unleashed. A rage that will consume you..."
That made Ember start to feel nervous, recalling the multiple occasions when her anger had nearly gotten the better of her. Thinking about it, it had been that way from the start: her first use of fire had been brought on by getting angry.
"There is more to you than you realise. You are... one of them." The way it said 'them' was like it had sucked on a bitter lemon, the disgust almost physically dripping from it. Whatever it was referring to, it was angry about it.
"Them'?" Ember repeated, puzzled. "Who is 'them'?"
"An ancient race, with power rivalling that of gods. But I will not be entombed again!"
The image of the Ood was replaced by a roaring horned beast, making everyone jump back in surprise, before the monitor went blank.
"What the hell was that?!" Danny yelped.
"I had that thing inside my head!" Toby was muttering.
Rose was speaking into the comm. "Doctor, what did it mean?"
Ember tuned out the voices of the others as she tried to piece together what she'd heard. The Beast said she was part of an ancient race, similar to what Skaldak had said before. But what did it mean when it said about power rivalling the gods and that she wasn't nearly strong enough yet, and that there was a rage inside her? Not to mention, it said that she was one of 'them'. Who?
Before she could think on it anymore, a loud screech of feedback came over the comm, making everyone stop yelling and questioning. The Doctor's voice quickly followed.
"You want voices in the dark, then listen to mine. That thing is playing on very basic fears. Darkness, childhood nightmares, all that stuff."
"But that's how the devil works." Danny argued.
"Or a good psychologist."
"Yeah, but how did it know about my father?" Ida asked.
Ember grabbed the comm. "A strong enough telepath or empath can easily see your deepest fears and use them against you."
"And what makes his version of the truth any better than mine, hmm?" The Doctor added. "Cos I'll tell you what I can see. Humans. Brilliant humans. Humans who travel all the way across space, flying in a tiny little rocket right into the orbit of a black hole, just for the sake of discovery. That's amazing! Do you hear me? Amazing, all of you. The Captain, his Officer, his elders, his juniors, his friends. All with one advantage. The Beast is alone. We are not. If we can use that to fight against him-"
"No!" Ember suddenly cried, but it was too late. There was a loud bang and the cable snapped, sending it hurtling down the shaft.
"The cable's snapped!" Ida cried.
"Get out!"
A thick plume of dust flew up from the shaft as the cable hit the bottom, damaging if not destroying the capsule that was there.
"Doctor, we lost the cable!" Rose called into the comm. "Doctor, are you all right? Doctor!"
Zach has a better view of things from the control room, but it wasn't good news. "Comms are down."
"Doctor? Doctor, can you hear me?"
Ember put her hand on Rose's shoulder to steady her. "They're alive, Rose, it's okay."
"She's right." Zach confirmed. "I've still got life signs, but we've lost the capsule."
Rose tried one more time with the comm. "Say something. Are you there?"
"There's no way out. They're stuck down there."
"But we've got to bring them back!"
"They're ten miles down. We haven't got another ten miles of cable." Jefferson shook his head as a banging came from the door behind them. "Captain? Situation report."
"It's the Ood." More banging, from their door and the one keeping Zach safe. "They're cutting through the door bolts. They're breaking in."
"Yeah, it's the same on door 25."
Rose looked worried. "How long's it going to take?"
"Well, it's only a basic frame, it should take ten minutes." Jefferson winced slightly as the door banged again. "Eight."
"I've got a security frame. It might last a bit longer, but that doesn't help you." Zach sounded almost defeated.
Ember straightened. "Then we have seven minutes to come up with a plan. Rose?"
"Right. So we need to stop them, or get out, or both."
"I'll take both, yeah?" Danny agreed. "But how?"
"You heard the Doctor. Why do you think that thing cut him off? Cos he was making sense. He was telling you to think your way out of this. Come on! For starters, we need some lights. There's got to be some sort of power somewhere."
"There's nothing I can do." Zach huffed. "Some Captain, stuck in here, pressing buttons."
"That's what the Doctor meant. Press the right buttons."
"We just need a little power, right? Not for the whole base." Ember said, trying to give a hint without being obvious.
"They've gutted the generators!" Zach paused. "...But the rocket's got an independent supply. If I could reroute that... Mister Jefferson? Open the bypass conduits. Override the safety."
Jefferson moved to do just that, going to the console. "Opening bypass conduits, sir."
"Channelling rocket feed in three, two, one. Power!"
There was a low hum, and then the lights flickered on. Rose grinned. "There we go."
"Let there be light!" Danny cheered.
"What about that strategy nine thing?"
Jefferson shook his head. "Not enough power. It needs a hundred percent."
"All right, we need a way out. Zach, Mister Jefferson, you start working on that." Rose turned to the archaeologist. "Toby, what about you?"
"I'm not a soldier." The young man said. "I can't do anything."
"No, you're the archeologist. What do you know about the pit?"
"Well, nothing. We can't even translate the language."
"Right..." Rose turned away, disappointed.
"Hold on. Maybe..."
Rose turned back to him. "What is it?"
"...Since that thing was inside my head, it's like the letters made more sense..."
"Well, get to work. Anything you can translate, just anything." Rose turned away again, this time going to Danny. "As for you, Danny boy. You're in charge of the Ood. Any way of stopping them?"
"Well, I don't know..."
"Then find out. The sooner we get control of the Base, the sooner we can get the Doctor out. Shift."
Ember looked down into the shaft, hoping that the Doctor was alright.
A few minutes later, there was another bang from the door as Jefferson worked. "Open junctions five, six, seven. Reroute filters sixteen to twenty four. Go."
Danny types at the console as Rose and Ember moved to his sides to watch. "There's all sorts of viruses that could stop the Ood. Trouble is, we haven't got them on board."
"Well, that's handy, listing all the things we haven't got." Rose quipped. "We haven't got a swimming pool either. Or a Tesco's."
Ember shook her head. "We don't need a virus. Just something to stop the psychic link."
Danny paused, thoughtful, before he tried something else. His eyes widened as the screen flashed an affirmative. "Oh, my God. It says yes. I can do it. Hypothetically, if you flip the monitor, broadcast a flare, it can disrupt the telepathy. Brainstorm!" He looked at Ember. "You're a genius!"
That made the brunette blush as she looked away. "Thanks, but you'd have figured it out on your own."
"What happens to the Ood?" Rose asked.
"It'll tank them, spark-out." Danny replied.
"There we are, then. Do it!"
At that the young man hesitated. "No, but I'd have to transmit from the central monitor. We need to go to Ood Habitation."
"That's what we'll do, then." Rose went back to Jefferson at the other terminal. "Mister Jefferson, sir. Any way out?"
"Just about." The head of security gestured to the screen, indications what looked like tunnels. "There's a network of maintenance tunnels running underneath the base. We should be able to gain access from here."
"Ventilation shafts?"
"Yeah, I appreciate the reference, but there's no ventilation. No air, in fact, at all. They were designed for machines, not life forms."
"But I can manipulate the oxygen field from here." Zach said over the comm. "Create discrete pockets of atmosphere. If I control it manually, I can follow you through the network."
Rose nodded. "Right, so we go down, and you make the air follow us by hand."
"You wanted me pressing buttons."
"Yeah, I asked for it. Okay, we need to get to Ood Habitation. Work out a route." The blonde turned to where Ember was still looking over the edge of the shaft. "Ember? Any hints?"
The brunette didn't answer for a few moments, and then she sighed. "He's alive. And he'll be back." She finally turned away from the shaft to go to the deck of grate that she knew would be their way out. "In the meantime, this is our way out."
"How did she know that?" Jefferson asked, having just seen it on the monitor.
"I have a cheat sheet." Was all Ember said, not in the mood to explain further.
A minute later, the Ood were almost through the door. Everyone except Danny was at the open decking, while the young man was still at the terminal.
"Danny!" Rose called.
"Hold on! Just conforming!"
"Dan, we got to go now! Come on!" Jefferson said.
Danny finally pulled an orange computer chip from the machine and ran over to the rest of the group. "Yeah! Put that in the monitor and it's a bad time to be an Ood!"
"We're coming back." Rose stated, making sure they all understood. "Have you got that? We're coming back to this room and we're getting the Doctor out."
Jefferson didn't bother to argue, knowing that now wasn't the time. "Okay. Danny, you go first, then you, Miss Tyler, Miss Ember and then Toby. I'll go last in defensive position. Now, come on, quick as you can!"
Ember saw the door finally open, the Ood stepping in. She threw out her hand and made a line of fire appear between the Ood and the humans, which made the former stop advancing and the latter look shocked.
"What the hell was that?" Danny asked.
"Cheat sheet! Now go!" Ember snapped, making the group finally get moving. They quickly made their way into the tunnel and closed it behind them.
"God, it stinks!" Rose said, scrunching her nose before she looked at Danny. "You all right?"
"Yeah, I'm laughing." Danny replied sassily as he lifted his wrist comm. "Which way do we go?"
"Just go straight ahead. Keep going till I say so." Zach instructed.
The group began to crawl along the tunnel in single file, and Rose couldn't resist a quip. "Not your best angle, Danny."
"Oi, stop it!"
"I don't know," Toby said, "it could be worse."
Ember suddenly realised that he was behind her, meaning that it was her bottom that he was eyeing. She was very glad to be wearing jeans as she looked over her shoulder to level him with a glare. "Eyes off, buddy!"
"I'd listen to her," Rose called back, a smirk on her face. "Cuz if she doesn't clout you one, the Doctor will."
The brunette raised a brow at that, but only got a wink in response.
"Straight on until you find junction seven point one." Zach said, bringing them back on track. "Keep breathing. I'm feeding you air. I've got you."
They reached a closed door and Danny spoke into the wrist comm. "We're at seven point one, sir."
"Okay, I've got you. I'm just aerating the next section."
"Getting kind of cramped, sir. Can't you hurry up?"
"I'm working on half power, here."
"Stop complaining." Jefferson said.
Rose leaned over to. "Mister Jefferson says stop complaining."
"I heard."
"He heard."
"But the air's getting a bit thin." Toby said.
Rose rolled her eyes. "He's complaining now."
"I heard."
Ember took a breath and promptly regretted it, lifting her shirt over her nose. "Pee-yew!"
Rose caught it too. "Danny, is that you?"
"I'm not exactly happy!"
"I'm just moving the air." Zach said. "I've got to oxygenate the next section. Now, keep calm or it's going to feel worse."
Ember concentrated, providing a small breeze to circulate the air a little. Everyone except Rose was surprised.
"Thanks, Ember." The blonde muttered to her.
Before anyone could say anything else, there was a massive bang from somewhere down the tunnel, making them all jump and breaking Ember's concentration.
"What was that?" Danny said.
"Mister Jefferson, what was that?"
"What's that noise?" Toby added.
Jefferson lifted his wrist comm to speak into it. "Captain, what was that?"
"The junction in Habitation Five's been opened. It must be the Ood. They're in the tunnels!"
"Well, open the gate!" Danny yelled.
"I've got to get the air in!"
"Just open it, sir!"
Rose looked down the tunnel, bearding the banging but not seeing the source. "Where are they? Are they close?"
"I don't know. I can't tell. I can't see them. The computer doesn't register Ood as proper life forms."
"Whose idea was that?"
"An idiot, that's who!" Ember said.
"Open the gate!" A second after Danny shouted, the gate slid up, allowing them to scramble onwards as Zach shouted instructions. "Danny, turn left. Immediate left!"
"The Ood, sir, can't you trap them?" Jefferson called. "Cut off the air?"
"Not without cutting off yours. Danny, turn right. Go right! Go fast, Dan. They're going to catch up!"
"I'll maintain defensive position." Jefferson said, turning to face the tunnel the way they'd come.
Rose stopped crawling, stopping Toby and Ember from moving as well. "You can't stop!"
"Miss Tyler, that's my job. You've got your task, now see to it!"
"You heard what he said, now shift!" Toby said, shoving Ember in the back a little harder than necessary. The rest of the group crawled on, following Danny to the next closed door as they heard gun shots from behind them.
"Eight point two." Danny said. "Open eight point two, Zach! Open eight point two!"
"I've got to aerate it!"
"Open it now!"
"I'm trying!"
"Danny, stop it!" Rose said as Danny thumped the closed door with his fist. "That's not helping."
"Zach, get it open!" Toby yelled into his comm.
"Jefferson, I've got to open eight point two by closing eight point one. You've got to get past the junction. Now move! That's an order, now move!"
Ember tried to push her way to the back of the group so she could go back for the man, but Rose and Toby grabbed her arms to stop her. She knew that the blonde was doing it out of fear, but the young man was doing it to stop her from saving Jefferson. She thought about using fire to help keep the Ood back, but she could already feel that it wouldn't help; Fire consumed oxygen, meaning she could end up using the air and suffocating them.
"I'm going to lose oxygen, Jefferson, I can't stop for your dramatics!"
The gate opened next to Danny. "That's it! Come on!"
"Danny, turn left and head for nine point two. That's the last one!" Zach said to them before addressing the straying member of the group. "Jefferson, You've got to move faster. John, move!"
"Mister Jefferson!" Rose called, seeing the man appear from round the corner.
"Keep going!" Toby pushed the blonde.
All Ember could do was watch helplessly as gate 8.1 closed before Jefferson could reach it, trapping him on the other side.
"Regret to inform, sir," the head of security said into the comm. "I was a bit slow. Not so fast, these days."
"I can't open eight point one, John." Zach said. "Not without losing air for the others."
Rose, Ember, Danny and Toby listened without interrupting.
"And quite right too, sir." Jefferson agreed. "I think I bought them a little time."
"There's nothing I can do, John. I'm sorry."
"You've done enough, sir. Made a very good captain under the circumstances. May I ask, if you can't add oxygen to this section... can you speed up the process of its removal?"
"I don't understand. What do you mean?"
"Well, if I might chose the manner of my departure, sir, lack of air seems more natural than, well, let's say... death by Ood. I'd appreciate it, sir!"
"...God speed, Mister Jefferson." Zach said after a long moment.
"Thank you, sir."
Ember bowed her head, closing her eyes tightly as there was a whooshing sound. Her arm trembled in Rose's grip as the brunette yanked her other arm away from Toby.
"Report," Zach said solemnly. "Officer John Maynard Jefferson PKD deceased with honours. 43 K two point one."
No one spoke for several moments, and then Danny lifted his wrist comm. "Zach, we're at the final junction, nine point two. And uh... if my respects could be on record. He saved our lives."
"Noted. Opening nine point two."
"No!" Ember cried, but she was too late. The gate began to open, and they immediately saw an Ood waiting on the other side.
"Lower nine point two!" Rose cried, crawling back. "Hurry, Zach!"
"Back! Back! Back!"
Toby looked back the way they'd come. "We can't go back! The gang point's sealed off! We're stuck!"
"Up!" Ember yelled, already reaching up to the grate and pushing. Rose quickly caught on and helped her push open the grate, which let them out into a corridor near door 32. "Come on, move it!"
The girls got out first, quickly reaching to help Danny get out. Leaving the young man with Rose, Ember lowered her torso into the tunnel so she was upside down, and just caught sight of 'Toby' hushing the Ood, his eyes red.
"Oi, devil boy!" Ember hissed, making sure she didn't get heard by the others above. 'Toby' turned to her. "As much as I wanna leave you here, get your ass moving!"
"Help me!" 'Toby' cried loudly, sounding like he was panicking even as he calmly crawled towards her. "Oh my god, help me!"
"Drama queen," Ember muttered, pulling herself out of the tunnel so that she and Rose could help Toby get out. She wanted to leave the possessed man behind, but she knew that he would only kill them with ease.
Once they were all up into the corridor, Ember turned to the far end, where the Ood were already pursuing them. She threw out her hand, making flames engulf the corridor to stop the Ood from advancing. "That won't hold them back for long! Let's go!"
Danny looked like he wanted to argue, but Rose gave him a shove. "It's this way!"
"Hurry it up!" Zach called through the comm as they reached Ood Habitation.
"Get it in!" Rose urged Danny to the terminal as the Ood who were on the level below looked up at them. "Transmit!"
"I'm trying, I'm trying! I'm getting at it!"
Ember went to the top of the stairs and made flames appear in front of her to keep the Ood at bay. "Sometime today would be great!"
"Danny, get that thing transmitting!"
After a fumble, Danny finally got the computer chip into the terminal. There was a high pitched sound that made Ember wince as the Ood grabbed their heads and writhed before collapsing.
"You did it!" Rose cried in joy, hugging Danny. "We did it!"
"Yes!"
"Zach, we did it. The Ood are down! Now we've got to get the Doctor."
"I'm on my way." Zach replied. "Meet me at the drill."
Ember bit her lip and grabbed Rose by the arm, lowering her voice so that the guys couldn't hear her. "Rose, this is going to sound weird, but when you see the bolt gun, grab it and don't drop it for anything. You're gonna need it."
Rose was puzzled, but she knew better than to question it. The group made their way out of the room, though Ember did pause to kneel beside the nearest Ood and rest her hand on its head.
"I'm sorry." She murmured, knowing what was going to become of them. She wished she could help them, but it was already too late. She stood and ran to catch up with the rest of the group, and they soon reached the drilling area where they met up with Zach.
Rose went straight to the communicator. "Doctor, are you there? Doctor, Ida, can you hear me?"
"The comms are still down." Zach said, going to the terminal. "I can patch them through the central desk and boost the signal. Just give me a minute."
Rose waited until Zach got the comms back up and running before she spoke into the communicator again. "Are you there, Doctor?"
"...He's gone." Ida's voice made Rose's blood go cold.
"What do you mean, he's gone?"
"He fell into the pit. And I don't know how deep it is. Miles and miles and miles..."
"But what do you mean, he fell?"
"I couldn't stop him. Ember... He said your name..."
Ember lowered her head, closing her eyes. She knew he wasn't dead, but...
Zach took the communicator from Rose. "I'm sorry. Ida? There's no way of reaching you. No cable, No back up. You're ten miles down. We can't get there."
Ida's sigh was heard through the comm. "You should see this place, Zach. It's beautiful... Well, I wanted to discover things, and here I am."
"We've got to abandon the base. I'm declaring this mission unsafe. All we can do is make sure no one ever comes here again."
"But we'll never find out what it was."
"Well, maybe that's best."
"...Yeah."
Zach sighed. "Officer Scott-"
"It's all right." Ida cut him off. "Just go. Good luck."
"And you." Zach lowered the comm. "Danny, Toby, close down the feed links. Get the retrotropes online, then get to the rocket and strap yourselves in. We're leaving."
Rose turned to him. "I'm not going."
"Rose, there's space for you and Ember."
"No, I'm going to wait for the Doctor. Just like he waited for me."
"I'm sorry, but... he's dead."
Rose shook her head. "You don't know him. 'Cause he's not... I'm telling you, he's not... And even if he was, how could I leave him all on his own, all the way down there? No, I'm going to stay."
"...Then I apologise for this." Zach looked that the remaining members of his crew. "Danny, Toby? Make her secure."
Rose struggled as Danny and Toby grabbed her by the arms, holding her still as Zach got a syringe from a new kit. "No, no. No! No! No! Let me go! Get off me! I'm not leaving!"
Zach didn't listen, injecting the contents of the syringe into the blonde's arm. The other two men held Rose up as she fell unconscious. "I have lost too many people. I am not leaving you behind." He turned to Ember. "Do I have to sedate you too?"
Ember shook her head. "As much as I don't wanna go, I know better. We have to get out."
Nodding, Zach pulled Rose over his shoulder to carry her. "Let's get her on board."
"It is time."
Ember turned at the voice. There, just before the door out of the drill room, the red-cloaked man was standing, now holding what looked like a staff made of wood or metal, she couldn't tell. She glanced at the rest of the guys, to find that they didn't seem to have noticed the new arrival at all.
"They cannot see or hear me." He pointed out. "It's better not to stress them more than they are already, and I don't want to set him off too early."
Ember tilted her head, having an idea who the 'him' was. "Time for what?"
The hood almost mimicked her own tilt. "It is time to show you what you really are."
The burning sensation suddenly appeared, Ember's eyes widening. "Oh no!"
"What?" Zach said, turning to see the brunette's body begin to emit a light. "What's going on?"
"I'm... teleporting!" Ember said the first thing that came to her head, waving her watch vaguely. "It's ok! Just look after Rose!"
She jumped before she could say anything else, leaving the three men to blink in puzzlement at the space she'd left behind.
Only one of them then narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
The burning sensation left Ember quickly, but wherever she was now, it was dark and humid. She could already feel the sweat sticking her shirt to her back, and pulled off her denim jacket to tie it around her waist with the sleeves. "Where am I?"
"Deep below the surface of Kroptor." Ember turned to find the cloaked man was only a few feet away from her. He approached slowly, passing her and moving to stand at the wall. "We are near the cell where He is restrained, at least in body."
Ember thought for a moment before her eyes widened. "Where's the Doctor?"
The man turned, pointing his staff. There, just to the side and easily missed if one didn't look, was the Doctor, lying still.
"Doctor!" Ember cried, running to his side instantly. The glass front of his helmet was smashed and he was unconscious, but otherwise he looked relatively unharmed. "Doctor, can you hear me? Doctor!"
The Time Lord gasped, opening his eyes as he awoke to Ember's calls. With a rough cough, he moved slightly and was puzzled to find the brunette knelt beside him, her face furrowed in worry. "...Ember?"
"Oh, thank god!" Ember whispered, unknowingly in the same role Rose had been just a short while ago. "Are you alright?"
"Yea, I think so..." The Doctor slowly pushed himself to his feet with Ember assisting him, and then he looked up at the shaft he'd fallen down. It only took another moment before a thought occurred to him and he whipped round to face Ember. "How did you get down here?"
Ember shrugged, gesturing behind her. "I jumped, but it looks like I had a little lift too."
The Doctor blinked, puzzled, before he followed her gesture and spotted their extra company. To Ember's surprise, his whole posture changed to that of something dangerous as he quickly pulled the brunette behind him. "You! What are you doing here?"
"You know him?" Ember asked, confused by the Doctor's sudden aggression.
"We only met once; on the Gamestation, just before I regenerated. You?"
"On Satellite Five the first time round. I met him while you were talking to Cathica and Suki. Then a few times after that." Ember replied. "But why are you angry?"
The hooded man answered. "It is to be expected. The Doctor's only encounter with me at this point in his timeline was not entirely pleasant."
"That's putting it mildly," the Doctor said. "She almost died because of you!"
Ember's first thought was that he meant Rose, but then the hooded man's reply threw her off. "I'm afraid you are mistaken. She chose to help the Bad Wolf fulfill her role in the timeline. I was merely a guiding hand."
"But who are you?" Ember asked. She tried to step around the Doctor, but his arm quickly blocked her off. "You said you were a friend. At least tell me your name?"
There was a pause as the man's hood tilted again. "Like yourself, I have had countless names and labels over the eons, many of them lost to time. But I suppose if I have to pick one for you to use, then you may call me... Arsene."
"Alright, Arsene," The Doctor said, clearly not interested with whatever name they'd been given to call him by. "How about telling us what you're doing here, and why you brought Ember down here?"
The man - Arsene - turned to face the wall again, looking up at something. "Because this is one of the few places in the universe that has any physical insight of Miss Ember's roots, so to speak."
Ember looked up at the wall that Arsene was facing, taking in the faded marks of murals on the walls. She knew there were some down here, but the ones she was looking at were not the ones from the show. These ones were more degraded than the ones she'd seen, fading to a point where it was difficult to make it out, but she was almost certain she could see the crude images of people, arms raised toward something above them. Something that looked like a circle of black...
With a start, she realised that she recognised that circle. She moved to roll up her sleeve, only to get frustrated when it refused to go further than her elbow. "Doctor, can you rip fabric?"
"What?" The Doctor looked at her in puzzlement, only to see what she was trying to do. "Oh. Yea, I can. Why?"
"I think that circle is on my arm," Ember said, unrolling her sleeve before holding her arm out to him. "Can you rip the sleeve? I don't care if you take the whole sleeve off."
The Doctor hesitated, but then saw the determination in her eyes, and he nodded. Putting his left hand on her shoulder to steady her, his right hand grabbed as much of the cloth as it could hold before he tugged harshly. It didn't come off the first time, like it did in movies, but Ember felt the stitches tear at the shoulder, and then the whole sleeve was ripped off on the second attempt, leaving her left arm bare except for the watch on her wrist.
After tossing aside the scrap of cloth, the Doctor gently took her arm and turned it so he could see the Mark on her bicep. Ember herself had to crane her head slightly, but she was surprised to see that the Mark was now even darker. It could no longer be mistaken for a bruise now, but a perfect circle of what could now be assumed as a tattoo. Within the circle, another image was clearer than ever; it looked like a bird or some other long-necked animal, head reared as though roaring, and wings spread out.
"What...?" The Doctor murmured as he looked at the mural again. The paint had faded too much over time to be sure of what it was depicting, but the circle the people were raising their arms to was very similar to the one on Ember's arm; too much so to be a coincidence. He turned angry eyes to Arsene, who had been silent the whole time. "What does that mean? What is that mural about?"
"It depicts the most ancient of races, worshipped and revered by the beginnings of the lesser races. When the great beast threatened to end all life before it could begin, the people prayed for a saviour." Arsene replied calmly. "But you already knew that, did you not? That Ember was one of them."
Ember looked at the Doctor, her arm trembling in his grasp. "You knew?"
The Doctor looked away. "I had suspicions. I've seen this Mark at this stage before. Something about it was familiar, but I couldn't find anything concrete to prove anything. I couldn't tell you, because you said to me that we find out for certain at the same time."
"Then what am I?" Ember asked. She looked between the Doctor and Arsene, her eyes stinging with tears she was determined not to shed. "What am I?"
"You are part Time Lord, physically." Arsene said after a moment. "But the rest of you... You are from the one race that the Time Lords cannot surpass, regardless of their knowledge and power. When those ancient people cried for help, you were the one who answered. You, Ember... are an Eternal."
Ember blinked, the tears now unnoticed as she stood in shock at what she'd just heard. That name was familiar, like she'd known it all along and just didn't realise it until it was in her face.
Eternal...
"I said I had a suspicion, but I didn't think it was actually possible," the Doctor said, narrowing his eyes at Arsene. "You're saying she's half Time Lord and half Eternal? Is that even possible?"
Arsene tilted his head. "Not in the traditional sense, but yes. She is the first of her kind, and is most likely going to be the last of her kind as well." He turned to the mural again, raising the staff to point at the symbols. "Do you see this, Ember?"
The brunette looked up at the symbols, and what happened next shocked her: the symbols that were in four distinct groups around the circle made perfect sense in her head, and she could read them!
On the wind...
In the earth...
Below the water...
Through the fire...
"How...?" Ember murmured, seemingly unaware that she'd even spoken.
Arsene lowered the staff. "Because you now know what you are, you can read our language."
Ember turned her eyes away from the words with difficulty. "But... I wasn't born this way, so how did...?"
"I cannot tell you exactly why or how this happened, as it is not my story to tell, but you will remember in time. What I can tell you is that you were one of oldest of our race, and I have known you for far longer than you currently recall."
Ember blinked again, looking at him. "You said 'our language', 'our race'... Are you...?"
"Yes. I am also an Eternal. But unlike you, I have no other races in my blood. Thus I am bound by laws, like the others. You, my dearest Ember, are no longer bound by such laws. As your power awakens, you will be the Judgement upon this world and all others. That is why I am here; to guide you as you awaken to your powers."
Ember looked at the Doctor, who was watching her with dark eyes that showed just how old he was. "And the Doctor? What's his part in this?"
Arsene turned to fully face them. "Time Lord blood runs through you. You have three elements that Eternals were never supposed to possess. I can only guide you on what you are as an Eternal; The Doctor, being the only one left who can, is to guide you on what it means to be a Time Lord. At the most important moments in time and space, you will have a choice: To save the worlds or condemn them."
"Three elements." Ember repeated. "As in like fire and the others?"
"No, I mean factors. Eternals are powerful, but they have flaws. You do not have those flaws, which makes you more powerful but equally more dangerous. These factors will be tested as you grow."
"And when will I know when I need to choose?"
Arsene smiled, the action barely visible from under the hood. "When the times come for you to choose, you will know."
Ember looked away, her eyes looking at the ground but not seeing it. This was a lot to take in.
The Doctor moved so that he faced the brunette, his back to Arsene. His hand gently took her chin, turning her to look at him, and felt his hearts ache at the turmoil he could see in her eyes. "I know this may not mean much, but I promise: I will always be there for you."
"No, it means a lot," Ember replied, lifting her hand to wipe her face. The Doctor would have offered a hanky if he wasn't in the spacesuit right now. The brunette looked around the Doctor to speak again, only to blink in puzzlement. "Where'd he go?"
The Doctor turned, to find that they were alone in the dark chamber. Arsene was nowhere to be seen. "Ugh, I hate it when they do that."
Ember looked up at him. "I think I've read somewhere that you've met Eternals before..."
"Yea, though not very often." The Doctor admitted. "Most of them were the same: think of rich, snobbish people who don't care who they hurt as long as they're entertained."
"Does that mean that... I was snobbish too?" Ember asked.
The Doctor gently put his hands on her shoulders, making her look him in the eye. "I said most of them. You are definitely not snobbish. You're one of the most caring people I've ever met."
Ember looked away, a small blush on her face. "Thanks. We need to talk about this, but now isn't the time: We've got a job to do down here. And here's a hint: Time Lord or not, we should have suffocated by now."
The Doctor's eyes widened as he quickly caught on, pulling the busted helmet off his head before looking up at the shaft again. "We're breathing... Air cushion to support the fall. You can breathe down here, Ida. Can you hear me, Ida?"
Ember shook her head as he tried to contact the woman he'd left on the surface. "Sorry, but I'm not sure if she can. They never showed either way."
The Doctor was about to answer when there was low rumble, and they looked up as they saw the faint outline of something in the sky far above. "The rocket..."
"The guys and Rose are safe." Ember said softly. "Let's hope she remembers what I told her..."
The two of them watched for a moment longer before turning and heading down one of the passages that dotted the area. The Doctor used his torch to light their way as well as to see various more paintings on the walls depicting stick people fighting what looked like a demon. These were the ones Ember had seen on tv.
"The history of some big battle. Man against Beast. I don't know if you're getting this, Ida. Hope so." He silently sent a prayer that she did. "Ember, you can read this now, right?"
Ember nodded, looking at the symbols carefully. Now she understood why the ones Toby had written on the wall didn't look right; the letters had really been in the wrong order. "A great beast threatened all life before it could even begin. The first - or early, it might say either - mortals prayed to the gods for salvation, and... they were answered. The beast was imprisoned in this pit, forever trapped beneath a black hole."
The Doctor noticed her hesitation, but didn't get to ask as they reached a massive cavern that opened up in front of them. Near the ledge were two bronze runs on pedestals, and after realising they looked familiar, he turned his light to the wall again, to find the same urns as a picture on the stone.
"Maybe that's the key." He murmured, reaching out to touch one of the urns. They both lit up at the touch. "Or the gate, or the bars..."
There was another rumble, but this one was more like a low growl. Ember pulled the Doctor back slightly as an impossibly huge, horned creature appeared from the chasm and looked at them. It was chained to the walls by its horns and limbs, keeping it from reaching them as it growled.
"And here we have the truth behind the myth," Ember said. "The very thing every culture and religion believed to be the evil of their worlds."
The Doctor frowned as he looked at the creature. "I accept that you exist. I don't have to accept what you are, but your physical existence, I'll give you that. I don't understand. We were expected down here. I was given a safe landing and air. You need us for something. What for?"
The beast growled and attempted to reach out, only to get stopped by the chains.
"Have I got to... I don't know, beg an audience? Or is there a ritual? Some sort of incantation or summons or spell? All these things I don't believe in, are they real? Speak to me! Tell me!"
The beast didn't answer verbally, but growled and tugged the chains again.
"You won't talk." The Doctor murmured, and then realisation dawned on his face. "Or you can't talk. Oh, hold on, wait a minute, just let me. Oh! No. Yes! No. Think it through. You spoke before. I heard your voice. An intelligent voice. No, more than that. Brilliant! But, looking at you now, all I can see..." the creature hissed, extending a long, forked tongue. "... is Beast. The animal. Just the body. You're just the body, the physical form. What's happened to your mind, hmm? Where's it gone? Where's that intelligence?" He looked at Ember as it all came together, her expression confirming it. "Oh, no..."
"I'm sorry, Doctor," Ember said, shaking her head as it throbbed again. "It's still in Toby. It's been causing my headaches, trying to stop me from helping or telling you the truth."
The Doctor turned, looking thoughtful, and then moved to look at the paintings again, putting it in order in his own head and saying it out loud as he did so. "You were imprisoned, long time ago. Before the universe, after, sideways, in between, doesn't matter. The prison is perfect. It's absolute, it's eternal... Oh, yes! Open the prison, the gravity field collapses. This planet falls into the black hole! You escape, you die. Brilliant! But that's just the body. The body is trapped, that's all. The devil is an idea. In all those civilisations, just an idea. But an idea is hard to kill. An idea could escape. The mind. The mind of the great Beast. The mind can escape!" Suddenly it made sense. "Oh, but that's it! You didn't give me air, your jailers did! They set this up all those years ago! They need me alive, because if you're escaping, then I've got to stop you!" He grabbed a large rick as the beast snarled in apparent rage. "If I destroy your prison, your body is destroyed. Your mind with it!"
He raised the rock to smash one of the urns, but then he hesitated, dropping it. "But then you're clever enough to use this whole system against me. If I destroy this planet, I destroy the gravity field. The rocket... The rocket loses protection and falls into the black hole. I have to sacrifice Rose."
Ember frowned as the Beast before them seemed to laugh, as though it was intelligent enough to know what was going on. "That's why he didn't just kill us all. He knew that to escape, he'd need leverage: a hostage."
"So, that's the trap. Or the test, or the final judgment, I don't know. But if I kill you, I kill her. Except that implies, in this big grand scheme of Gods and Devils, that she's just a victim." The Doctor glanced at Ember, seeing her nod before he looked at the Beast. "But I've seen a lot of this universe. I've seen fake gods and bad gods and demi-gods and would-be gods. And out of all that, out of that whole pantheon, if I believe in one thing, just one thing... I believe in her."
With that, he picked up the rock again, this time didn't hesitate, and smashed the urn closest to him. He was about to do the same to the other one when Ember beat him to it, only she just shoved it off the pedestal to smash on the ground.
"I warned you!" She yelled, facing the Beast head on as it roared in rage. "You want out of your prison?! Well here it is!"
"This is your freedom!" The Doctor added. "Free to die! You're going into that black hole and we're riding with you!"
The beast snarled, fire beginning to build up in its mouth. Ember surprised the Doctor by grabbing his hand. "No, we're not! We have a ride of our own!"
She pulled him back, and they'd just reached the passageway when they heard something and looked back, only to see fire engulfing the passage, about to cover them.
"No!" Ember cried, moving to stand between the Doctor and the flames. To the Doctor's surprise, the flames curved and bent around them like they had some kind of invisible bubble or shield. The sight gave Ember confidence, that instinct at the edge of her consciousness fueling words. "I am the Great Fire! You are tiny! A speck of dirt on an otherwise beautiful universe! I put you here, and I banish you now!"
The flames suddenly turned, going back the way they'd come, and they were sure they could hear the Beast now roaring in pain.
The Doctor saw the warning sign a split second before Ember collapsed, catching her in his arms and holding her up. "Ember!"
"Tardis..." she gasped, her eyes barely open. "It's here..."
She passed out before she could say anything else.
She ignored his cries of rage, his vows to return, as she turned away from his prison. Another presence walked by her side, and she could sense his old age like a tang in the air.
"Thank you, Great One," he spoke in a rasp, his voice rough with age. "We are forever in your debt."
"Do not thank me. You are the ones who stood up: it was your prayers that called to me." She replied, walking to where one of her own stood waiting: She'd known him for a long time. "You and your people will learn to grow on your own."
The old man looked conflicted. "You will not guide us? How would we live without your grace?"
She smiled kindly. "If you lived in my grace, it is not truly living. I have faith in you."
"And what of the Beast? He is enchained, but what if he one day becomes free?"
"Should he ever escape his prison, he will fall into the abyss. This is his punishment, and should he end it, he will end." She turned to the old man. "As for you and this universe... it has only just begun. And I will watch it grow."
Ember took a breath and opened her eyes, finding herself in the Tardis, sat on the captains chair. The ship was shaking a bit, but not as much as usual, though she didn't know how she was still in her seat. The Doctor, still in the spacesuit, was at the controls, and Ida was sat on the floor nearby, unconscious but alive.
Ember was about to speak when the Doctor did so first. "Sorry about the hijack, Captain. This is the good ship Tardis. Now, first thing's first. Have you got a Rose Tyler on board?"
"I'm here! It's me!" Rose's voice made Ember breathe a sigh of relief. "Oh, my God. Ember jumped! Where are you?"
"She's with me, she's fine," the Doctor said. "I'm just towing you home. Gravity schmavity. My people practically invented black holes. Well, in fact, they did. In a couple of minutes, we'll be nice and safe. Oh, and Captain? Can we do a swap? Say, if you give me Rose Tyler, I'll give you Ida Scott? How about that?"
"She's alive?" Zach said, very pleasantly surprised.
Danny was just as ecstatic. "Yes! Thank God!"
"Yeah! Bit of oxygen starvation, but she should be all right. I couldn't save the Ood. I only had time for one trip." The Doctor allowed a moment to be somber. "They went down with the planet."
"It's fine," Ember finally spoke, making him turn and grin at her in relief. "They were living a fate worse than death. One we're going to rectify one day. I promised them."
The Doctor took her hand as soon as she was close enough, giving her a fond smile that made her blush and look away. He allowed her the moment as he focused on the beeping console. "Ah! Entering clear space. End of the line. Mission closed."
After trading Ida for Rose and sending the remaining team on their way, the trio of travelers were off again.
Rose had gone to shower and have a rest, so the Doctor was left wondering where Ember had gone. He tried to wait, but it wasn't long before he was searching for the brunette. He found her in the library, an open book in her hands and frowning to herself.
"Are you alright?"
Ember glanced at him before she looked at the book she was holding, snapping it closed with a huff. "You've got the biggest collection of books in the universe, baring one rival, and yet I can't find a thing on Eternals."
"Well, you wouldn't." The Doctor replied as he walked over to a large armchair and seated himself. "Eternals are as the name says. There's never been much history behind them, mainly because they don't tend to hang around this realm of existence. This is apparently 'too small' for them."
Ember looked at him as she put the book back where she found it. She then moved to sit on the carpet in front of him, tucking her legs in and wrapping her arms around her knees. "Can you tell me something?"
"Well, I've only met a few of them myself, and anything I know, you've probably already read about."
"There wasn't much on them." Ember said. "Just that they can create things and are telepathic. They see everyone else as 'Ephemerals', and get ther amusement by watching them or making them do things to entertain them."
The Doctor nodded. "They can manipulate thoughts to influence behaviour, or even make someone forget they were even there. One of the old bedtime stories was that they were always watching, but apparently that isn't true. They can't seem to use telepathy over long distances or if the target has a strong mind."
"Like you?"
"Like me. I once used the Time Vortex to turn one of them into an Ephemeral, but that was one-time thing, and other than that I don't know of any physical way of beating them. Where they lack the imagination and creativity, they make up for it by using ours. They get bored otherwise."
Ember looked at her feet. "And somehow... I'm the one who put the Beast in the pit, before I lost my memories and became... this. But... why me? I'm not special, or important. Why was I chosen to have this power?"
"Who said you weren't important?"
That made Ember look up at the Doctor, who was now leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees as he looked at her. His dark eyes seemed to hold a storm, and she briefly wondered if that was how he got his nickname. Strangely, it didn't frighten her at all. "Um, well, I... tend to think that myself."
The Doctor moved again, this time kneeling in front of her. His hand gently held her chin, making sure she was looking at him as he spoke. "You are special, Ember. And you're so, so important. Not just to the universe, but to me. I don't know where I'd be right now if you hadn't been there by my side. And I am more than willing to keep telling you that until you believe it."
For a long moment, they just sat there, and it seemed that everything around them just disappeared. Ember felt her breath hitch as the Doctor suddenly leaned in close and put his lips over hers; a gentle kiss that didn't escalate until she started it, to which he gladly reciprocated.
A familiar burning started up at that moment, and she really wished she didn't have to go. The Doctor pulled back to look at her fondly.
"I'll see you soon," he said gently, before she jumped.
And there! Not only is one of Ember's mysteries revealed, but we now have a name for the red-cloaked stranger, and what he is to boot!
For those of you who have not watched the episodes from the First Doctor to the Eighth, yes, there is really a race known as Eternals. In the recent series (from 9th Doctor onwards), They've only been mentioned in passing on a few occasions, but from what I've read about them, they can be very dangerous, as they're practically godlike in their powers. Let it feed your imagination on why Ember is part Time Lord. What made her this way? Why? What makes her different from a full Eternal like Arsene? Well, the only way you'll find out is to stick with the saga!
Next Time: Ember doesn't get a chance for a break, as she's got to stop war breaking out between two races. But how do you do that when you can't tell one race from the other? Stay Tuned!
