Thanks to wtfstarftw, stephzpollock, class87fan, Sophia893 for following/faving my story.
NicoleR85: thanks!
"Ancient Rome!" the Doctor announced pulling back a curtain to reveal a street lined with stalls offering various types of goods. Both Alyssa and Donna smiled at the scene before them. The red head was happy to be in another time period. The ginger woman was just as overjoyed that this was what she got for her first proper trip in the TARDIS, as a companion.
"Though technically to all of them, this is brand new Rome", Alyssa added nodding to the people who were wandering about.
"Oh, my God. It's…it's so Roman. This is fantastic", Donna said happily before hugging both Alyssa and the Doctor individually. "I'm here, in Rome. Donna Noble in Rome", she said excitedly as she, the Doctor and Alyssa started to walk down the street. This was a hundred times better than her holiday the Egypt. The ginger sobered up when she realised something. They were in Rome, in the past. Which meant she was technically watching people who'd been dead for centuries. When she told the Doctor and Alyssa that, the Time Lord said quietly
"Well, don't tell them that"
Donna then spotted sign advertising two Amphora's for the price of one. She was a little confused as it was in English. "Hold on a minute. That sign over there's in English", she said pointing it out to the Doctor and Alyssa. "Are you having me on? Are we in Epcot?"
"No, no, no, no. That's the TARDIS translation circuits. Just makes it look like English", the Doctor said quickly "Speech as well". Alyssa couldn't help think about her trip around Europe where it was exactly like right now. The signs where in English and the people were speaking it too. The TARDIS hadn't been in any of the places at the same time as she was, at least she didn't think so, that meant the only explanation for it was her bond with the blue box. "You're talking Latin right now"
"Seriously?" Donna asked.
"Yep", Alyssa said popping the p.
"I just said seriously in Latin", Donna said.
"Oh, yeah", the Doctor said.
"What if I said something in actual Latin, like 'veni, vidi, vici'? My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said 'veni, vidi, vici' to that lot, what would it sound like?" Donna asked.
"I'm not sure", the Doctor replied not having really thought about what it would sound like if you spoke the actual language.
"Me neither", Alyssa admitted. She was so used everything being in English, due to the TARDIS, she would sometimes forget that she was actually hearing another language.
"You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?" the Doctor asked.
Alyssa lightly whacked his arm "rude", she lightly scolded.
"Still not ginger", the Doctor said. It really wasn't fair, both women had red/ginger hair. He was the only one out of the three of them who wasn't a ginger. He sincerely hoped that he was ginger in his next body. If he wasn't… well he might do something drastic like wear a bow tie or even worse… a fez. The Doctor couldn't understand why Alyssa loved wearing them. They were a basic hat that sometimes had a silly black tassel hanging down. A Stetson or even the red trilby Alyssa wore once, are much better hats than a fez. He would often voice his dislike for the hat which only served for Alyssa to wear them more just to annoy him. Although if he had to be completely honest, he wasn't as annoyed by her wearing them as he let on. It's true he didn't love fezzes as much as Alyssa seemed to but he'd have to admit that she looked rather attractive wearing one. Then again he was biased in that regard, she could covered in dirt or wearing a bin bag and he'd still find her attractive. The Doctor was never going to tell her that he only complained about her wearing a fez just to see her wear them more often because then she'd stop.
"I'm going to try it", Donna said bringing the Doctor out of his thoughts. When she'd gone over to a fruit seller, the Time Lord turned his attention to Alyssa.
"What?" she asked seeing him gazing at her with a loving look on his face.
"You look beautiful", he said taking in her appearance once again. She'd decided to dress for the times, which was a nice surprise for the Doctor. Her outfit consisted of a light blue toga with a silver cord wrapped around her waist showing off her figure; a pair of sandals and her charm bracelet. Her hair was pulled back a low bun with a few wavy tendrils framing her face.
"You've said that already", Alyssa said with a smile "three times to be exact".
"I can't help it", the Doctor said "you really are beautiful, like a goddess".
Alyssa blushed "I'm not a goddess", she said.
"Yes you are" the Doctor placed a hand on her cheek "you're my brilliant red haired goddess". He leaned in to give her a kiss when she put a finger on his lips, stopping him.
"What did I tell you? No kisses for a week", Alyssa said trying to be firm although it was a little difficult when he'd just complimented her like that "Although I might take that down to a few days if you do something to impress me", she added removing her finger. The Doctor smiled, he'd been trying to think of a way to get her to change her mind once he had come out of his sulk. And she'd just given it to him.
Donna walked up to them with a confused look "you ok Donna?" Alyssa asked.
"That man just said I sounded Celtic when I spoke Latin" Donna said "What does he mean Celtic?"
"Welsh. You sound Welsh", the Doctor said.
"Well I've learned something new today. Latin sounds Welsh to a Roman person", Alyssa said. The trio walked off unaware that they were being watched.
"Don't our clothes look a bit odd?" Donna asked as they walked. She wondered if she should've dressed up like Alyssa to fit in with the times.
"Nah. Ancient Rome, anything goes. It's like Soho, but bigger", the Doctor replied. Alyssa glanced around looking for places she'd seen in present day Rome. But there was nothing familiar like the Colosseum which she would've expected to see by now given the sheer size of it.
"I've got a question. If this is ancient Rome, where are all the landmarks?" Alyssa asked "We should at least be seeing something by now. I mean the Colosseum is huge".
"You've got a good point, love. Where is everything?" the Doctor led them down an alley way. Alyssa glanced back when they entered, getting the sense that someone was following them. But there was no one there.
"Not an expert, but there's seven hills of Rome, aren't there?" Donna asked noticing the huge single mountain in the distance.
"Yes there is", Alyssa replied not looking at the mountain but behind them. She still felt like someone was there watching them.
"So how come they've only got one?" that got Alyssa's attention. She looked at the mountain and her eyes widened.
"Oh god", she breathed. The Doctor was about to ask her what was wrong when the ground shook. Smoke rose from the top of the mountain confirming Alyssa's fears.
"Wait a minute. One mountain, with smoke. Which makes this…" Donna began
"Pompeii", the Doctor finished, staring in horror at the smoking volcano "We're in Pompeii. And it's volcano day!"
The moment the Doctor realised they were in Pompeii, he grabbed Alyssa's hand and ran to where he'd parked the TARDIS. His hearts sank when he pulled back the curtain to find the blue box was missing.
"You're kidding", Donna said when she arrived slightly out of breath from running after the couple "You're not telling me the TARDIS has gone".
"Okay", the Doctor said.
"Where is it then?" Donna asked.
"You… told me not to tell you", the Doctor replied cheekily making Alyssa crack a smile at that.
"Oi! Don't get clever in Latin!"
"Hold on" the Doctor ran to the seller Donna had been talking to earlier, the two woman following. "Excuse me. Excuse me. There was a box. Big blue box. Big blue wooden box, just over there. Where's it gone?"
"Sold it, didn't I?" the seller said smugly.
"She wasn't yours to sell", Alyssa said cross that this man had guts to sell something that didn't even belong to him.
"It was on my patch, weren't it?" the seller said.
"That doesn't automatically give you the right to sell her!" Alyssa shouted.
"Who'd you sell it to?" the Doctor asked quickly wanting to get his beloved box back as soon as possible so they could leave. He was well aware that Vesuvius erupting was a fixed point in time, it had to happen. He knew that Donna wasn't going to understand why they couldn't do anything, why they couldn't warn people about the impending disaster. His only hope was that Alyssa would understand and would help him to get Donna to leave.
"Old Caecilius. Look, if you want to argue, why don't you take it out with him? He's on Foss Street. Big villa. Can't miss it", the seller said.
"Thanks", the Doctor said and ran off with Donna and Alyssa. Less than a second later he was back "What'd he buy a big blue wooden box for?" he asked. Alyssa came back grabbed his hand and dragged him off. "You didn't let him answer my question", the Doctor said as they walked to where Donna was waiting for them.
"What question?" Alyssa asked.
"Why did he buy a wooden box?" the Doctor said.
"Who the hell knows, maybe he liked the colour", the red head said with a shrug "anyway, we know she's on Foss Street but I think I might be able to find out where it is without having to ask anyone".
"How?" the Doctor questioned.
"Well, I've got this connection to the ship so I figured that had to be good for more than telepathically talking to her", Alyssa explained.
"That's…a good idea", the Time Lord agreed. He watched her close her eyes and frown in concentration.
"What is she doing?" Donna asked, coming over to the pair, eyeing the red head curiously.
"Trying to find the TARDIS. Now shush", the Doctor said, rather rudely.
"While she's doing that, you can help me find a bell", the ginger said.
Alyssa opened her eyes and looked at her confused "What do you want a bell for?" she asked.
"To warn everyone", Donna replied "Start the evacuation. What time does Vesuvius erupt? When's it due?"
"It's 79AD, twenty third of August, which makes volcano day tomorrow", the Doctor replied.
"Plenty of time. We could get everyone out easy", Donna said.
"Yeah, except we're not going to", the Doctor told her.
This time Donna was the one who was confused. The Doctor, the man who saves people had just said that they weren't going to do anything to help the people of Pompeii. "But that's what you do. You're the Doctor. You save people!"
"Not this time. Pompeii is a fixed point in history", the Doctor said.
"What is going to happen tomorrow, has to happen. There is no stopping it", Alyssa added knowing that she had to back the Doctor up on this. If it was only the Time Lord trying to convince Donna that there was nothing they could do, the ginger was likely fight against him. But if she also told Donna that they couldn't do anything, there was a chance that she'd listen.
"Says who?" Donna asked folding her arms. She was a little hurt that Alyssa was taking the Doctor's side in this. She had hoped that the red head would help her to convince the Time Lord that they had to do something. And it would've been likely that the Doctor would listen to her seeing as she was his girlfriend.
"Says me", the Doctor said deciding that if Donna was going to blame someone for stopping her trying to save these people, it was better she put all the blame on him instead putting it on both himself and Alyssa.
"What, and you're in charge?" Donna asked incredulously.
"TARDIS, Time Lord, yeah!"
"Donna, human, no!" Donna argued back.
"Ali, human, we have to go!" Alyssa added really wanting to get to the TARDIS. While they'd been arguing, she used her link to the ship to find out where on Foss Street it was. Now she knew the location, she wanted to go ASAP.
"I don't need your permission. I'll tell them myself", Donna said not about to be deterred in warning people about the imminent volcano eruption.
"You stand in the market place announcing the end of the world, they'll just think you're a mad old soothsayer. Now, come on. TARDIS. We are getting out of here", the Doctor took Alyssa's hand and walked hurriedly away in a random direction.
"Well, I might just have something to say about that, Spaceman!" Donna shouted as she hurried after them.
"Oh, I bet you will", the Doctor called back.
"Uh…Doctor? Its that way", Alyssa said, pointing to a side street.
"Oh, right", the Doctor said and changed direction. By the time they'd reached Caecilius' villa, the ground was shaking from yet another tremor. The Time Lord entered the home just in time to catch a marble bust as if toppled off its plinth. "There you go", he said setting it upright. Alyssa stopped in the doorway making Donna bump into her as she stared at Caecilius. He looked exactly like the Scottish stranger she'd met in the graveyard!
"Thank you, kind sir", Caecilius said grateful that his bust hadn't been broken "I'm afraid business is closed for the day. I'm expecting a visitor".
"But that's me, I'm a visitor. Hello", the Doctor said cheerfully shaking his hand.
"Who are you?" Caecilius asked.
"I am… Spartacus", the Doctor replied.
"And so am I", Donna added. She gave Alyssa a nudge when she hadn't introduced herself. To be fair she was still surprised by Caecilius. How could she not be? He looked like the Scottish stranger from the graveyard minus the accent. Also he was slightly younger than the man she'd met but still what were the odds she would run into someone who looked like the man who'd given her the advice which helped her deal with the loss of her grandmother. Was Caecilius an ancestor of his? That would explain the resemblance. The only way she was going to know for sure was to go back to the time when she met him.
"Oh, I'm Octavia", she said. The Doctor was a bit disappointed that she'd not called herself Spartacus too but he could see that she seemed to be distracted by the man in front of them.
"Mister and Mrs Spartacus?" Caecilius asked gesturing at the Doctor and Donna.
"Oh no, no, no. We're not, we're not married", the Doctor said quickly taking Alyssa's hand to show which woman he was in a relationship with.
"We're not together", Donna hastily added "these two are husband and wife".
"Oh so you two are sisters then?" Caecilius asked looking between Alyssa and Donna "You look very much alike".
"I suppose we do but I think that Octavia here is the prettiest one out of the both of us", Donna said.
"And very brilliant", the Doctor added. Alyssa blushed at their compliments.
"Well I think my sister is equally brilliant and pretty", she said making Donna smile. She was rather flattered that Alyssa thought she was just as brilliant as herself.
"Anyway back to business", the Doctor said to Caecilius knowing that they've wasted time in chatting to the man, they had to find the TARDIS and leave.
"I'm sorry, but I'm not open for trade", Caecilius said apologetically.
"And that trade would be?" the Doctor asked.
"Marble. Lopus Caecilius. Mining, polishing and design thereof. If you want marble, I'm your man", Caecilius answered.
"That's good because my husband here is the marble inspector", Alyssa said pulling her hand out of the Doctor's and moved past Caecilius. Her face broke out into a smile when she saw the TARDIS tucked away in a corner.
"By the gods of commerce, an inspection", Caecilius' wife gasped. She took the cup of wine away from her son and pours it out into the pool behind him "I'm sorry, sir. I do apologise for my son".
"Oi!" the boy cried annoyed at his mother.
"And this is my good wife, Metella. I must confess, we're not prepared for a…"
"Nothing to worry about although that doesn't look like marble to me", Alyssa said pointing to the TARDIS. She went over to it and knocked on the door "nope that's definitely not marble. It's wood. I'm afraid we're going to have to take this".
"I only bought it today", Caecilius protested.
"Ah, well… Caveat emptor", the Doctor said as he and Donna joined Alyssa by the TARDIS.
"Oh, you're Celtic. They're lovely", Caecilius commented politely.
"Yes, well as my wife said we're going to have to take this off your hands for a proper inspection", the Doctor said.
"Although while we're here, wouldn't you recommend a holiday, Spartacus?" Donna asked the Doctor.
"Don't know what you mean, Spartacus", the Doctor said pretending not to understand what she meant.
"Oh, this lovely family. Mother and father and son. Don't you think they should get out of town?" Donna asked.
"Why should we do that?" Caecilius asked her.
"Well, the volcano, for starters", Donna replied.
"What?" Caecilius asked puzzled by the word she'd used.
"Volcano", Donna repeated.
"What-ano?"
"That great big volcano right on your doorstep", Donna said earning even more confused looks from the family.
"Oh, Spartacus, for shame. We haven't even greeted the household gods yet", the Doctor said pulling Donna was to the shrine. "They don't know what it is. Vesuvius is just a mountain to them. The top hasn't blown off yet", he told her quietly.
"The Romans don't have a word for volcano. Not until tomorrow", Alyssa added equally quietly.
"Oh, great, they can learn a new word as they die", Donna said sarcastically. She turned to Alyssa going to try one last time to appeal to the woman, to get her to change her mind about leaving. "Ali that boy is going to die tomorrow. Are you ok with that?" Alyssa didn't say anything "what if that boy was Connie?" Donna asked recalling her wedding reception and how Alyssa had acted when tending to the child "would you leave her to burn to death? Or would you save her?"
Alyssa glanced at Caecilius' and Metella's son feeling conflicted. She knew that as it was fixed point they couldn't do anything to warn people about the impending disaster as it would completely change history. But would it hurt to get this family out of Pompeii? Surely history wouldn't be changed too much by Caecilius, Metella and their son suriving Vesuvius erupting. There must've been some survivors she thought vaguely remembering about 20,000 people died when the volcano blew. She was sure that number wasn't the whole population of Pompeii which suggested there were survivors.
The Doctor knew what Donna was trying to do, she was playing on Alyssa's feelings towards children in an effort to get her to change her mind about leaving. "Donna we can't warn them. This is fixed point in history", the Doctor reminded her. Donna opened her mouth to argue when Caecilius' servant called out
"Announcing Lucius Petrus Dextrus, Chief Augur of the City Government". At those words an older man entered the room wearing a cloak that covered the right half of his body.
"Lucius. My pleasure, as always", Caecilius greeted.
"Quintus, stand up" Metella whispered to her son who did so rather reluctantly.
"A rare and great honour, sir, for you to come to my house" Caecilius reached out his hand to shake Lucius' but the older man keeps his right hand hidden under his cloak.
"The birds are flying north, and the wind is in the west", Lucius said.
"Quite. Absolutely. That's good, is it?" Caecilius asked a bit puzzled by the man's remark.
"Only the grain of wheat knows where it will grow"
"There now, Metella. Have you ever heard such wisdom?" Caecilius asked.
"Never. It's an honour", Metella replied.
"Pardon me, sir. I have guests. This is Spartacus, Spartacus and Octavia", Caecilius said gesturing to the trio by the shrine who wave.
"A name is but a cloud upon a summer wind"
"But the wind is felt most keenly in the dark", the Doctor retorted.
"Ah. But what is the dark, other than an omen of the sun?" Lucius asked taking this as a challenge from the strangely dressed man.
"I concede that every sun must set…"the Doctor began.
"Ha!"
"…and yet the son of the father must also rise", he finished with a smug look.
"Damn. Very clever, sir. Evidently, a man of learning", Lucius remarked.
"Oh, yes. But don't mind me. Don't want to disturb the status quo", the Doctor said.
"He's Celtic", Caecilius informed Lucius.
"We'll be off in a minute" the Doctor said leading Alyssa and Donna towards the TARDIS.
"I'm not going", Donna insisted.
"It's ready, sir", Caecilius told Lucius.
"You've got to", the Doctor whispered.
"Well, I'm not", Donna said firmly.
"The moment of revelation. And here it is", Caecilius pulled a cloth off of a square piece of marble. The Doctor looked back over his shoulder to see what appeared to be a circuit carved onto the marble. "Exactly as you specified. It pleases you, sir?"
"As the rain pleases the soil"
"Oh, now that's different", the Doctor said walking forward to get a closer look "Who designed that, then?"
"My Lord Lucius was very specific", Caecilius replied.
"Where'd you get the pattern?" Alyssa questioned.
"On the rain and mist and wind"
"But that looks like a circuit", Donna pointed out.
"Made of stone", the Doctor added.
"Do you mean you just dreamt that thing up?" Donna asked Lucius.
"That is my job, as City Augur"
"What's that, then, like the mayor?" Donna asked.
"Oh, ha. You must excuse my sister-in-law, she's from…Barcelona" the Doctor turned and led Donna off a little ways to explain what an Augur was "Not, but this is an age of superstition, of official superstition. The Augur is paid by the city to tell the future. 'The wind will blow from the west', that's the equivalent of ten o'clock news"
"They're laughing at us", a female voice said. Alyssa, the Doctor and Donna looked over to see a rather ill looking young woman enter the room "Those three, they use words like tricksters. They're mocking us"
"No, no, I'm not. I meant no offence", the Doctor quickly said.
"I'm sorry. My daughter's been consuming the vapours", Metella explained.
"Oh for gods, Mother. What have you been doing to her?" Quintus said very worried for his sister.
"Not now, Quintus"
"Yeah, but she's sick. Just look at her!" Quintus pressed.
"I gather I have a rival in this household. Another with the gift", Lucius remarked eyeing the young woman in the yellow toga.
"Oh, Evelina has been promised to the Sibylline Sisterhood. They say she has remarkable visions", Metella said proudly.
"The prophecies of women are limited and dull", Lucius scoffed "Only the menfolk have the capacity for true perception"
"Talk about sexist", Alyssa muttered.
"I'll tell you where the wind's blowing right now, mate", Donna added.
"The Mountain God marks your words. I'd be careful, if I were you", Lucius warned as the ground trembled as if offended by what Alyssa and Donna had just said.
"Consuming the vapours, you say?" the Doctor asked looking at Evelina.
"They give me strength", Evelina said.
"It doesn't look like it to me", the Doctor remarked.
"Is that your opinion… as a doctor?" Evelina asked.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Doctor, that's your name" Evelina turned her attention to Alyssa "and she is Alyssa, your lover".
"How did you know that?" the Doctor asked taken aback by the fact that she knew his name and Alyssa's.
"And you…you call yourself Noble", Evelina said looking at Donna.
"Now then, Evelina. Don't be rude", Metella warned.
"No, no, no, no. Let her talk", the Doctor said. While he had been surprised that Evelina knew who they were, he was still interested in what she had to say.
"All three of you both come from so far away", Evelina said swaying slightly on the spot.
"The female soothsayer is inclined to invent all sorts of vagaries"
"Oh, not this time, Lucius. No, I reckon you've been out-soothsayed", the Doctor said.
"Is that so… man from Gallifrey?" Lucius said earning a shocked look from the Doctor.
"What?"
"The strangest of images. Your home is lost in fire, is it not?" Lucius asked.
"Doctor, what are they doing?" Alyssa asked feeling rather uneasy about how they knew who they were and where the Doctor was from.
"You, daughter of…" Lucius frowned "interesting. You have two mothers. Sarah and Idris"
Alyssa stared at him. She only had one mother, Sarah. While it was true she did have an unusual bond to the TARDIS, the blue box was in no way her mother. So what did he mean by her having two mother's? "And you, daughter of… London", Lucius said turning her attention to Donna.
"How does he know that?" Donna asked now starting to get rather scared at that fact that they not only knew their names but where they were from.
"This is the gift of Pompeii. Every single oracle tells the truth"
"That's impossible", Donna breathed.
"Doctor…she is returning", Lucius said.
"Who is? Who's she?" the Doctor demanded.
"She is returning", Lucius repeated "when she does…." his gaze shifted over to Alyssa "someone will die". At those words the Doctor tugged Alyssa behind him. The way he was looking at her implied that she was the one who was going to die. And he wasn't about to let that happen. Not now… not when this 'she' returns…not ever.
"You, daughter of London… there is something on your back", Lucius told Donna.
"What's that mean?" Donna asked now very scared. Lucius didn't answer her, just simply smirked.
"Even the word 'Doctor' is false", Evelina said stepping forward "Your real name is hidden. It burns in the stars, in the Cascade of Medusa herself. You are a Lord, sir. A Lord…of Time" she then collapsed.
"Evelina!" Metella exclaimed as she hurried to her unconscious daughter, the Doctor going over as well.
Alyssa and Donna stood back watching Metella tend to a still unconscious Evelina. "She didn't mean to be rude", the woman said apologetically "She's ever such a good girl. But when the gods speak through her… Metella unwrapped the bandage on Evelina's arm to reveal grey skin beneath it.
"What's wrong with her arm?" Donna asked.
"An irritation of the skin. She never complains, bless her. We bathe it in olive oil every night", Metella replied.
"What is it?" Alyssa questioned stepping closer getting the feeling that it was much more than an irritation of the skin.
"Evelina said you both come from far away. Please, have you ever seen anything like it?" Metella asked.
Donna stepped forward and lightly touched Evelina's arm "it's stone", she replied surprised to be feeling stone under her fingers instead of skin. "What do you think Ali?" she asked turning to the red head. Alyssa had told her about her powers, how she was able to sense things. Donna wondered if perhaps she could sense the cause of Evelina's arm turning to stone. Alyssa stepped forward and tentatively put her hand on the young woman's arm. Her eyes widened when she sensed that something was changing Evelina and not in a good way.
"It's nothing to worry about Metella. Should clear up in a few days", Alyssa assured her. Metella relaxed looking rather relieved about that. Donna eyed Alyssa knowing full well that she'd just lied to the woman.
"Why did you lie to her?" Donna asked as she and Alyssa left Metella alone with Evelina.
"Because I didn't want to worry her by telling her the truth", Alyssa said.
"Which is?" Alyssa glanced back towards Evelina's room.
"Something is changing Evelina from the inside", Alyssa said.
"Changing her into what?" Donna asked worried for the young woman.
"Something non-human" Donna's eyes widened at that "and I have a feeling that the vapours Evelina has been consuming is the cause for the change that's happening inside of her. Keep an eye on her Donna". The Ginger woman nodded.
"What about you?" Donna asked.
"I'm going to have a chat with Caecilius. See what he knows", Alyssa replied. She found the man sitting by the hypocaust talking to the Doctor. Alyssa hung back not wanting to interrupt them.
"Didn't you think of moving away?" the Doctor asked. He then thought about what he said and quickly added "Oh no, then again, San Francisco…"
Caecilius looked at him a bit confused "That's a new restaurant in Naples, isn't it?" he asked having never heard of San Francisco before. A loud howling sounded from the within the hypocaust making the Doctor look down peering through the smoke to try and see what was making that noise. Alyssa made herself known to the two men by coming up and asking the very same question that was on the Doctor's mind.
"What is that noise?" the Doctor asked.
"Don't know. Happens all the time. They say the gods of the Underworld are stirring", Caecilius replied.
"But after the earthquake, let me guess… Is that when the soothsayers started making sense?" the Doctor asked.
"Oh, yes, very much so. I mean, they'd always been, shall we say, 'imprecise'? But then the soothsayers, the augurs, the haruspex, all of them, they saw the truth again and again" Alyssa frowned at that how can a simple earthquake enable all the various 'psychics' to make perfect predictions every time? she thought "It's quite amazing. They can predict crops and rainfall with absolute precision"
"Haven't they said anything about tomorrow?" the Doctor asked. He winced when Alyssa lightly hit him upside the head. He rubbed the back of his head knowing this time at least she was justified in hitting him upside the head. He'd just asked about tomorrow, something he shouldn't have done as it being a fixed point, he wasn't allowed to change a single thing that happened.
"No", Caecilius answered "Why, should they? Why do you ask?"
"He was just curious", Alyssa quickly replied "Evelina consumes the vapours right? Just like all the soothsayers do".
"That's right. It's how my daughter and the others see", Caecilius told her.
"Ipso facto…" the Doctor said putting on his glasses before he leaned into the hypocaust.
"Look you…" Caecilius started but the Doctor straightened with tiny particles of rock pinched in his fingers.
"They're all consuming this" he rubbed his fingers together letting the rock particles fall.
"Dust?" Caecilius asked looking at it confused.
"Tiny particles of rock", Alyssa grimaced when the Doctor tasted the remaining fragments of rock from his fingers. If Alyssa hadn't given the Doctor a kissing ban already she might've considered it as him tasting rock was rather gross. "They're breathing in Vesuvius", the Doctor told the pair. Alyssa looked down into the hypocaust at that. The Doctor noted the look on her face as she gazed down into the hole, something was bothering her.
He took her aside so he could talk to her in private. "What's wrong?" the Doctor asked.
"It's Evelina. She has this irritation on her arm but when I touched it, it felt like stone. I used my powers to see if I could sense the reason for it. And I did. Something is slowly changing her from the inside Doctor", Alyssa explained.
"And Evelina has been breathing in rock particles from Vesuvius. You think that's whats changing her?" he asked thinking about how there was something a bit different about the particles he tasted from the hypocaust.
"Partially. There has to be something more she and the other soothsayers are breathing in", Alyssa said.
"Unless there's alien rock monsters living within Vesuvius", the Doctor remarked.
"You think that's possible? Alien rock monsters?" Alyssa asked.
"Anything's possible Ali. And I think there's one place we're sure to find some answers", the Doctor said.
"Where?"
"Lucius Petrus Dextrus' house". As neither of them knew where he lived, they decided to ask Quintus for help. They found the teenager reclined on a sofa once again drinking wine. "Quintus, me old son. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus. Where does he live?" the Doctor asked him.
"It's nothing to do with me", Quintus said.
"Let me try again. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus…" the Time Lord pulled out a gold coin from behind Quintus' ear, getting the boy's attention "Where does he live?"
"Don't tell my Dad", Quintus said when he, the Doctor and Alyssa stopped outside Lucius' house.
"Only if you don't tell mine", the Doctor said after he'd jumped onto a barrel and pulled open the shutters that covered the window. Alyssa watched him climb through the window before following. When she got up onto the window sill, the Doctor took hold of her hands and helped her down into the Villa. "Pass me that torch", he said to Quintus who did so. "Anyone coming?" the Doctor asked Alyssa who shook her head, she couldn't sense anyone coming their way. The Time Lord walked around the glowing hypocaust and peeked behind a set of large drapes. "Give me a hand", he said to Alyssa taking hold of the cloth with his free hand. Alyssa grabbed hold of it too and together they pulled the drapes away to reveal 6 stone circuits similar to the one Caecilius had made.
"The liar! He told my father it was the only one", Quintus said having decided to enter the villa at the same moment the two had pulled the drapes away.
"Well, plenty of marble merchants in this town. Tell them all the same thing, get all the components from different places…"
"And no one can see what you're building", Alyssa finished.
"Which is what?" Quintus asked.
"The future, Doctor", Lucius said from behind them. The trio spun around to see him standing there flanked by two guards "We are building the future, as dictated by the gods".
Several minutes later saw the Doctor arranging the marble circuits with Alyssa's help while Lucius and Quintus watched "Put this one there..." the Doctor took the marble circuit Alyssa was holding and placed in on the shelf with the others. "This one…there. Er, keep that one upside down, and what you got?"
"Enlighten me", Lucius said.
"What, the soothsayer doesn't know?" the Doctor asked.
"The seed may float on the breeze in any direction", Lucius replied.
"I think that's soothsayer speak for 'I don't know'", Alyssa said.
"Definitely", the Doctor agreed "this is an energy converter", he added gesturing to the marble circuits on the shelves.
"An energy converter of what?" Lucius questioned.
"I don't know. Isn't that brilliant? I love not knowing. Keeps me on my toes just like my gorgeous wife does", the Doctor gave Alyssa a smile who returned it. "It must be awful being a prophet, waking up every morning" he moved to stand beside Lucius, looking at him "'is it raining? Yes, it is, I said so'. Takes all the fun out of life. But who designed this, Lucius, hmm? Who gave you these instructions?"
"I think you've rambled enough", Lucius said.
Alyssa shook her head at that. That was hardly the Doctor rambling. She'd been with the Doctor long enough to know when he was rambling. And she loved listening to him ramble, even if she could barely follow what he was saying, she loved listening to it regardless.
The Time Lord even scoffed at that. He also knew that he wasn't rambling. It seemed that Lucius didn't know much else about him other than where he was from and quite possibly that he was a different species. "Lucius, really, tell me. Honestly, I'm on your side. I can help", the Doctor said.
"You insult the gods. There can be only one sentence. At arms!" the Doctor quickly moved back to Alyssa's side as the guards stepped forwards, drawing their short swords.
"Oh, morituri te salutant", the Doctor said.
"Celtic prayers won't help you now", Lucius told him.
"But it was him, sir. He made me do it", Quintus cried pointing at the Doctor making Alyssa stare at him in disbelief. He'd been willing to show them where Lucius lived, after the Doctor pulled the trick with the coin but still he had been willing. Now he was trying to put the blame on the Doctor? She wasn't standing for that at all.
"He didn't make you do it Quintus. You willingly showed us the way", Alyssa reminded him.
"Come on now, Quintus, dignity in death", the Doctor turned to Lucius "I respect your victory, Lucius. Shake on it?" he held out his hand. He knew Lucius couldn't shake his hand, not with the one hidden beneath his cloak. Most if not all of it was stone. It was Alyssa who'd tipped him off. She'd been casting glances at Lucius, specifically his non-exposed arm. She had given him a minute nod as if to say that he too was changing. The Doctor guessed that most of his hidden arm was stone, hence why it was under the cloak. He just had to prove it "Come on…" he wiggled his fingers "Dying man's wish?" the Doctor then suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Lucius's right hand. He yanked hard, pulling the man's right arm off.
"But he's…"
"Show me", the Doctor said holding Lucius' stone arm. Lucius shoved his cloak aside to reveal the stone stump of his right arm.
"The work of the gods", he said proudly. Alyssa just stared at him, wondering how anyone could be so proud to be turning into a walking statue.
"He's stone!" Quintus exclaimed.
"Armless enough, though" the Doctor tossed the arm back "Whoops!" he grabbed Alyssa's hand and pulled her towards the window. "Quintus!" he shouted as he helped her up onto the windowsill. She quickly jumped down the other side. Quintus hurled his torch at the guards and ran towards the window too as the Doctor flashed his sonic at the marble circuits causing them to topple over. The two males then make their escape out the window. "Run!" the Doctor shouted taking Alyssa's hand again. Together they ran as fast as they could away from Lucius' house with Quintus hot on their heels.
After a short while of running, the trio stopped. "No sign of them. Nice little bit of allons-y. I think we're all right"
"But his arm, Doctor. Is that what's happening to Evelina?" Quintus asked.
"Yes", Alyssa replied "but I promise you Quintus we're going to help your sister". Quintus opened his mouth to say something when a deep, loud bang sounded.
"What was that?" the Doctor asked.
The noise sounded again. This time the ground shook causing a set of crates to fall over. "The mountain?" Quintus questioned looking up and over in its direction.
It happened again this time a lot closer than before. "No, it's closer. Footsteps…" the Doctor stated watching more items falling over as the noise sounded again and again making the ground shake.
"It can't be", Quintus said in disbelief.
"Footsteps underground", the Doctor repeated as it grew even closer. It was coming for them. The Time Lord grabbed Alyssa's hand and they ran. They hurry down the street, grills flying off hypocaust vents as they pass. When they reached the villa, everyone was gathered in the main area. "Caecilius? All of you, get out", the Doctor ordered as the entire room was shaking.
"Doctor, Ali what is it?" Donna asked coming over to them.
"I think we're being followed", Alyssa told her. Before Donna could ask her by what, the hypocaust grill in the villa flies off. Everyone watches as a large rock like creature emerges.
"The gods are with us", Evelina breathed in awe of the large being.
"Water!" the Doctor shouted seeing that the creature held together internally by magma "We need water. Quintus. All of you, get water. Donna! Ali!" immediately Alyssa, Donna, Quintus and a servant ran to grab containers for water.
Thankfully Donna and Alyssa found a couple of buckets just sitting in a corner. They snatched them up and hurried back to the main room. But before they could help, the pair were grabbed by the Sibylline Sisters and dragged away, their calls for help muffled by the hands over their mouths.
Completely unaware of the fact that both his girlfriend and companion had been kidnapped, the Doctor tried to talk with the creature "Talk to me! I'm the Doctor. Just tell me who you are".
The creature opened its mouth to breathe fire once more but this time it was stopped by Quintus who tossed water at it. They all watched as its fire went out causing it to solidify. Then it started cracking, pieces of it falling to the floor before it collapsed completely.
"What was it?" Caecilius asked.
"Carapace of stone, held together by internal magma", the Doctor explained "Not too difficult to stop, but I reckon that's just the foot soldier".
"Doctor, or whatever your name is, you bring bad luck on this house", Metella said giving him a look. She was sure that this man, his wife and sister-in-law was to blame for what was happening.
"I thought your son was brilliant", the Doctor informed her "Aren't you going to thank him?"
Both Metella and Caecilius look at their son in amazement before pulling him into a hug. The Doctor turned back to look at the pile of rock that was the creature "if there are aliens at work in Pompeii, it's a good thing we stayed", he muttered. The Doctor glanced around looking for Alyssa and Donna so they could discuss what to do next. But they weren't there. "Ali? Donna?" he called. There was no answer. Trying not to panic, he looked around again. This time he caught Evelina's eyes. She quickly looked away but there was no mistaking the look on her face. Guilt.
The Doctor walked over to her "where are they?" he demanded.
"The Sibylline Sisters took them", Evelina replied quietly.
"You saw Donna and Ali get taken and you didn't stop them?" the Doctor asked.
"I'm sorry", Evelina murmured.
"You better hope they haven't hurt Ali and Donna, because if they have I won't be held responsible for my own actions", the Doctor threatened. Evelina watched him go rather afraid of what he might do if he discovered that the women had been hurt.
"Ugh I really hate being knocked out", Alyssa mumbled before she slowly opened her eyes. She frowned at the blurry figure standing above her but when she blinked a couple of times her vision cleared to show that it was one of the soothsayers. And she was holding a dagger. Immediately Alyssa tried to move but found she couldn't. She'd been tied down to something cold and hard by her wrists and ankles. "You've got to be kidding me", she said realising that she was on an altar of some sort and was about to be sacrificed.
"The false prophets will surrender both their blood and their breath", the woman declared.
"I won't be surrendering anything to you", Alyssa informed her trying to not let on how scared she was at the moment. Which was quite a bit. Who could blame her? She was tied down to an altar going to be sacrificed. Maybe she could use her powers….
"I wouldn't think about using your gifts if I were you", the priestess told her "or your friend will die first" Alyssa looked in the direction the soothsayer indicated and saw Donna gagged and tied to a pillar. Alyssa moved her head to look back at the priestess above her. Play for time she thought keep her talking.
"What's your name?" she asked trying to stay calm.
"Spurrina"
"Listen to me Spurrina. The Doctor will be coming for us, and he won't be happy. So it would be in your best interest to let us go, right now", Alyssa said.
"You will be silent!" Spurrina ordered bringing her dagger close to Alyssa's face.
"No I won't. Please I'm trying to help you. If the Doctor sees this, I don't know what he'll do" Alyssa was very aware of the Oncoming Storm. And the kind of things the Doctor would do when he was like that. "So please just let us go".
"This prattling will cease forever!" Spurrina declared.
"No please!" Alyssa cried as Spurrina raised the blade….
When an arm grabbed Spurrina's and roughly yanked her backwards. She was pushed up against a pillar by a very angry Doctor "stay were you are!" he shouted at the other soothsayers who moved to help their sister. "If you've hurt her I will kill you", the Doctor threatened. Spurrina could tell he was very serious by the look on his face. The Time Lord stepped back giving her one last look that told her to stay put.
"You alright?" the Doctor asked Alyssa when he came up to the altar.
"I am now", she replied honestly. The Doctor got out his sonic and used it on the ropes around her wrists.
"Do you know, I met the Sibyl once" he told her "hell of a woman. Blimey, she could dance the Tarantella. Nice teeth" he moved around to the other end to get the ropes around Alyssa's ankles "she actually had a thing for me" the Doctor helped Alyssa sit up "but she told me it wouldn't last, couldn't even begin. She must've seen that I was going to meet a beautiful, brilliant red head and fall completely in love with her". The Doctor placed a hand on her cheek and Alyssa closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. Now that he was there, she felt completely safe despite that fact that she was almost killed moments ago.
"Donna", Alyssa said opening her eyes when she'd remembered that the ginger was still tied to the pillar. The Doctor watched the soothsayers as Alyssa freed Donna. "Sorry about that", she apologised.
"It's alright. Just don't forget me next time", Donna said.
"I won't", Alyssa promised. She stepped up to stand beside the Doctor who put his arm around her waist. Donna stood one the red head's other side.
"Let me tell you about the Sibyl, the founder of this religion. She would be ashamed of you", the Doctor said scolding the soothsayers "All her wisdom and insight turned sour. Is that how you spread the word, hey? On the blade of a knife?"
"Yes, a knife that now welcomes you!" Spurrina said lifting the knife that she'd picked up while the Doctor and Alyssa had been distracted.
"Show me this man!" a rasping voice called before Spurrina could lunge at the Doctor. All the priestesses turn towards the voice and kneel down with the exception of Spurrina.
"High Priestess, the stranger would defile us", the priestess protested.
"Let me see. This one is different. He carries starlight in his wake", the High Priestess remarked.
The Doctor, Alyssa and Donna step towards the red curtain where the voice was coming from "Oh, very perceptive. Where do these words of wisdom come from?" the Doctor asked.
"The gods whisper to me", the High Priestess replied.
"They've done far more than that. Might I beg audience? Look upon the High Priestess?" the Doctor requested.
Two priestesses drew the curtains aside to reveal the High Priestess completely covered by stone "Oh, my God. What's happened to you?" Donna asked shocked by her appearance.
"The heavens have blessed me", the High Priestess told her.
"If I might…" the High Priestess held out her hand for the Doctor to touch "Does it hurt?"
"It is necessary" the woman answered.
"Who told you that?" the Doctor asked.
"The voices", the High Priestess replied.
"Is that what's going to happen to Evelina? Is this what's going to happen to all of you?" Spurrina showed Donna her arm which was like Evelina's only there was much more stone.
"The blessings are manifold", Spurrina said sounding rather proud about her arm turning to stone.
Alyssa shook her head "that's no blessing Spurrina", she told her.
"The people of Pompeii are turning to stone before the volcano erupts", the Doctor said "But why?"
"This word, this image in your mind. This volcano. What is that?" the High Priestess asked.
"More to the point, why don't you know about it? Who are you?" the Doctor questioned.
"High Priestess of the Sibylline", the High Priestess replied.
"That's not what he meant. He meant whatever alien thing that's inside you turning you into a living statue", Alyssa spoke up.
"Your knowledge is impossible", the High Priestess stated.
"You can read my mind. You know what gifts I have so you know I'm telling the truth. Tell us what you are", Alyssa said.
"We…are…awakening", the High Priestess said, her voice echoing with another's.
"The voice of the gods", Spurrina gasped.
"Words of wisdom, words of power", the priestesses started chanting.
"Name yourself! Planet of origin. Galactic coordinates. Species designation according to the universal ratification of the Shadow Proclamation", the Doctor demanded over the chanting of the priestesses.
"We…are…rising"
"Tell me your name!" the Doctor ordered.
"Pyrovile!" the High Priestess wailed. The priestesses chanting changed to 'Pyrovile'.
"What's a Pyrovile?" Donna asked.
"Well, that's a Pyrovile, growing inside her. She's a halfway stage", the Doctor explained.
"That's the half way stage?!" Alyssa exclaimed.
"Yes", the Doctor said "That thing in the villa was an adult Pyrovile".
"And the breath of a Pyrovile will incinerate you, Doctor", the High Priestess rasped "and you lover". The Doctor was fine with threats being made against him. But Alyssa? Never.
"I warn you…. I'm armed" the Doctor told the High Priestess pulling out a yellow water pistol from his jacket pocket much to the surprise of Donna and Alyssa. "Donna, Ali, get that grill open"
"What for?" Donna asked.
"Come on", Alyssa said taking her arm and pulling her over to the grill.
"Just. What are the Pyrovile doing here?" the Doctor asked moving around the bed to stand in front of the women, keeping the water pistol trained on the High Priestess.
"We fell from the heavens. We fell so far and so fast, we were rendered into dust", the High Priestess explained.
"Right, creatures of stone shattered on impact. When was that, seventeen years ago?"
"We have slept beneath for thousands of years", the High Priestess said.
"Okay, so seventeen years ago woke you up, and now you're using human bodies to reconstitute yourselves. But why the psychic powers?"
"We opened their minds and found such gifts", the High Priestess replied "just like your lover".
"Okay, that's fine. So you force yourself inside a human brain, use the latent psychic talent to bond", the Doctor said "I get that, I get that, yeah. But seeing the future? That is way beyond psychic. You can see through time. Where does the gift of prophecy come from?"
"Got it!" Alyssa called when she and Donna finally managed to pull up the grill.
"Now get down", the Doctor told them.
"What, down there? Donna asked.
"Yes, down there" neither women made a move to jump down into the hole "Why can't this lot predict a volcano? Why is it being hidden?"
"Sisters, I see into his mind. The weapon is harmless", Spurrina said.
"Yeah, but it's got to sting" the Doctor sprayed the High Priestess with water who shrieked in pain. "Get down there!" he said to Alyssa and Donna. This time they did do what he said.
"You fought her off with a water pistol", Donna stated after they landed in the hypocaust "I bloody love you!"
"Now you know how I feel", Alyssa said pressing a kiss to the Doctor's cheek.
"I thought you weren't going to do that for a week?" the Doctor asked her.
"I wasn't but you saved both me and Donna. Plus I was rather impressed with the way you used that water pistol on the High Priestess", Alyssa replied.
"Enough to take me off the ban?" the Doctor asked hopeful.
"It's down to three days", Alyssa said.
The Doctor was rather happy about that. She'd taken four days off just for using a water pistol against an alien. It was going to be rather easy to get her to shorten the ban even more. He glanced down a tunnel "This way"
"Where are we going now?" Donna asked.
"Into the volcano", the Doctor said.
"No way"
"Yes, way", the Doctor spun the water pistol "Appian way".
"But if it's aliens setting off the volcano, doesn't that make it all right for you to stop it?" Donna asked as they walked through the tunnel.
"Still part of history"
"But I'm history to you and so is Ali. Why is that different?" Donna asked.
"Some things are fixed, some things are in flux. Pompeii is fixed", the Doctor said.
"How do you know which is which?" Donna questioned.
The Doctor stopped walking and turned to Donna "Because that's how I see the universe", he explained "Every waking second, I can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not. That's the burden of a Time Lord, Donna. And I'm the only one left"
Alyssa took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze to remind him that he wasn't alone any more. And he never would be for as long as she was around. "How many people died?"
"Donna stop it", she said knowing it was hard enough for the Doctor to be here.
"Doctor, how many people died?" Donna repeated.
"20,000", the Doctor replied quietly.
"Is that what you can see, Doctor? All twenty thousand? And you think that's all right, do you?" Donna asked.
Before the Doctor could answer, a loud roar sounded. "They know we're here. Come on", the Doctor said pulling Alyssa along. Donna quickly following after them. It didn't take them long to reach a large cavern. "It's the heart of Vesuvius. We're right in the heart of the mountain", the Doctor told Alyssa and Donna.
"There's tons of them", Alyssa remarked seeing several large Pyroviles wandering around the large space.
"What's that thing?" the Doctor asked noticing a round object in the middle on the cavern. He took out a telescope and used it to take a better look at the object.
"Doctor a Pyrovile is coming over", Alyssa told him seeing the large rock creature head in their direction.
"That's how they arrived", the Doctor said seemingly ignoring what Alyssa had just said "Or what's left of it. Escape pod? Prison ship? Gene bank?"
"But why do they need a volcano? Maybe it erupts, and they launch themselves back into space or something?" Donna suggested.
"Oh, it's worse than that", the Doctor said collapsing the telescope and putting it back into his pocket.
"How could it be worse?" Donna asked at the same time Alyssa said
"The Pyrovile's getting closer"
"Heathens! Defile us!" Lucius suddenly shouted. The trio saw him appear on the far side of the cavern "They would desecrate your temple, my lord gods!"
"Come on!" the Doctor grabbed Alyssa's hand, the red head taking hold of Donna's hand and they all ran towards the middle of the cavern.
"We can't go in", Donna said.
"Well, we can't exactly go back Donna", Alyssa told her.
"Crush them! Burn them!" Lucius shouted. A Pyrovile steps in front of them but the Doctor quickly used the water pistol on the creature causing it to move away from the water.
"There is nowhere to run, Doctor, daughter of London and daughter of two mothers", Lucius called as they ran to the pod.
What is it with the two mother's thing? Alyssa thought. "Now then, Lucius. My lords Pyrovillian, don't get yourselves in a lather. In a lava?" he looked at Donna and Alyssa, neither of whom looked that impressed with his joke. "But if I might beg the wisdom of the gods before we perish. Once this new race of creatures is complete, then what?"
"My masters will follow the example of Rome itself. An almighty empire, bestriding the whole of civilisation", Lucius declared.
"But if you've crashed, and you've got all this technology, why don't you just go home?" Donna asked.
"The Heaven of Pyrovillia is gone"
"What do you mean, gone? Where's it gone?" Alyssa questioned. First the Adipose Planet is 'lost', now the Pyrovile Planet is 'gone'? That's some coincidence.
"It was taken. Pyrovillia is lost. But there is heat enough in this world for a new species to rise", Lucius said.
"Yeah, I should warn you, it's seventy percent water out there", the Doctor informed him.
"Water can boil. And everything will burn, Doctor", Lucius said.
"Then the whole planet is at stake. Thank you. That's all I needed to know. Donna, Ali" the trio ducked inside the pod and the Doctor closed the door with his sonic.
"Could we be any more trapped?" Donna asked taking a look around the cramped space.
"I don't think we can", Alyssa replied. Suddenly the pod got a little hotter.
"Little bit hot", Donna remarked.
"It's no hotter than being in a spaceship that was set on a collision course with a living sun", Alyssa said fanning her face. Donna stared at her wondering if she was being serious. "You said this was an energy converter back at Lucius' place. What exactly does it do?" she asked the Doctor nodding to the complete marble circuit in front of them.
"What do you think it does?"
"I don't know that's why I'm asking", Alyssa said.
"Why don't you just tell us?" Donna asked thinking that now wasn't really the best time to get Alyssa to try and figure it out.
"You can do this", the Doctor said.
Alyssa stared at the circuit, her mind going over everything "they want to take over the world, create a new Pyrovillia. And this is how they're going to do it. The energy converter coupled with the power of the volcano… they can convert millions of people into Pyroviles"
"Couldn't have said it better myself", the Doctor said proudly.
"But can't you change it with these controls?" Donna asked.
"Of course I can, but don't you see? That's why the soothsayers can't see the volcano. There is no volcano. Vesuvius is never going to erupt", the Doctor said.
"But …you can change it back?" Donna asked carefully.
"I can invert the system, set off the volcano, and blow them up, yes. But, that's the choice. It's Pompeii or the world"
"Oh, my God", Donna said shocked.
"If Pompeii is destroyed then it's not just history, it's me. I make it happen", the Doctor said with horrible realisation.
"Doctor, the Pyrovile are made of rocks", Donna pointed out "Maybe they can't be blown up".
"Vesuvius explodes with the force of twenty four nuclear bombs" the Doctor explained setting the controls "Nothing can survive it", he looked at the two women sadly "Certainly not us".
"Never mind us", Donna said.
The Doctor puts his hands on a lever "Push this lever and its over. 20,000 people" the Time Lord hesitated. He knew he had to do it, it was a fixed point. But he'd be killing all those people not to mention himself along with Donna and Alyssa. Alyssa placed her hands over his, Donna immediately followed suit. They exchanged glances and pulled the lever down together.
All hell broke loose.
The Doctor, Donna and Alyssa stumble out of the pod when it landed with crash outside of town. The trio waste no time hurrying back into Pompeii where chaos has erupted in the streets. On the way back to the villa, Donna tried to help people, shouting at them to head for the hills but no one listened. As she ran, Alyssa saw people rushing about, screaming absolutely terrified. Not only did she see it, she could feel it. All of it. And it was too much.
Alyssa stopped in her tracks and with tears in her eyes, she dropped to her knees. "Doctor something's wrong", Donna told him having looked back to see that the red head was no longer following them.
"I can feel it. All of it", Alyssa said quietly as the Doctor approached her. She looked up at him with a tear stained face "it's too much".
"I know" the Doctor helped her to her feet "we've got to get back to the TARDIS. Can you run?" he asked fully prepared to carry her the rest of the way if he had to.
Alyssa nodded "yes I can". He held out his hand which she took and grabbed Donna's hand with her free one. The three of them ran hand in hand towards Caecilius' villa. When they entered, they found the family cowering in a corner. Seeing this, Alyssa pulled her hand out of the Doctor's. The Time Lord didn't notice as he was too busy making his way to the TARDIS. "Donna go into the TARDIS", Alyssa said.
"Why?" Donna asked.
"Just go, I'll be right behind you" Donna didn't wait for Alyssa to tell her a third time. She hurried into the TARDIS where the Doctor was preparing to leave.
"Come with me", Alyssa said to Caecilius holding out her hand. The older man wasted no time grabbing her hand and getting to his feet. They were going to live!
Caecilius and his family watched from the hillside as ash covered Pompeii. "It's never forgotten, Caecilius", the Doctor assured him "Oh, time will pass, men'll move on, and stories will fade. But one day, Pompeii will be found again. In thousands of years. And everyone will remember you"
"What about you, Evelina? Can you see anything?" Donna asked Evelina.
"The visions have gone", Evelina replied although she glanced at Alyssa with a look that told her that may not be quite true.
"The explosion was so powerful it cracked open a rift in time, just for a second. That's what gave you the gift of prophecy. It echoed back into the Pyrovillian alternative", the Doctor explained not having seeing the look Evelina gave Alyssa "But not anymore. You're free".
"But tell me. Who are you, Doctor? With your words, and your temple containing such size within?" Metella questioned.
"Oh, I was never here. Don't tell anyone", the Doctor said.
"The great god Vulcan must be enraged. It's so volcanic. It's like some sort of…volcano. All those people" Metella hugged her husband, tears slipping down her face as she grieved for all those who lost their lives.
The Doctor and Donna slipped away leaving the family to their grief. Alyssa took Evelina aside so her family wouldn't overhear them "you had another vision didn't you?" she asked.
"I did. It came to me while we were in that temple of yours", Evelina replied.
"What did you see?" Alyssa asked.
"It wasn't really clear what was going on", Evelina replied "but it left me with this bad feeling about you".
"Me?"
Evelina nodded "yes. Please promise me that you'll be careful", she said.
"I will. Take care Evelina", Alyssa said and then left. "Sorry I took so long. I was talking to Evelina", Alyssa informed the Doctor and Donna when she stepped into the TARDIS and closed the door.
"That's alright. Where do you two want to go next?" the Doctor asked the women.
"I don't know about you but I want to freshen up and change clothes", Donna replied.
"That sounds nice but there's somewhere I need to go first", Alyssa said.
"Where?" the Doctor asked.
"My past", Alyssa replied.