Thanks to Kuroppoi Kitsune, bubblegirl89236 for following my story.
NicoleR85: thanks!
The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS alone to face the soldiers waiting for him. He'd told both Amy and Alyssa to wait inside until he called for them, to let them know it was safe. He had decided to do that the moment he saw the soldiers on the scanner. He wasn't about to risk the safety of his fiancée or his companion …well mostly his future wife as her safety was his top priority. Not that Amy's safety was important to him also, it was…but Alyssa's safety came first. Always.
After a moment the soldiers parted to allow Winston Churchill to pass. The Doctor smiled at the man before calling for the women "Amy! Ali!"
Amy stepped out first, followed by Alyssa both looking at Churchill in amazement. "Doctor. Is it you?" the man asked looking him up and down.
"Oh, Winston, my old friend" the Time Lord laughed, going to shake Churchill's hand but the man motioned with his own as if he wanted something. "Ah, every time!"
"What's he after?" Alyssa asked.
"TARDIS key, of course", the Doctor replied. Every time he'd met the man, he'd been trying to get the key off of him.
"Think of what I could achieve with your remarkable machine, Doctor!" Churchill cried "The lives that could be saved".
"Ah, doesn't work like that" the Doctor closed the TARDIS door behind Amy.
"Must I take it by force?" Churchill threatened playfully.
"I'd like to see you try", the Doctor said "for starters you'd have to get through Ali here" he put an arm around the Time Lady.
"I'm not sure the young lady is much of a threat", Churchill said, his tone still playful.
"You should never underestimate me, good sir", Alyssa said with a smile "it would be a big mistake, trust me".
"At ease", Churchill called and the soldiers lowered their guns. "So who are your two lovely companions?" he asked.
"Winston Churchill, Amy Pond" the Doctor introduced, nodding at Amy. The woman could only wave at him, still rather amazed to be meeting THE Winston Churchill "and this Alyssa Palmer aka wife to be", the Time Lord proudly "plus mother of my child".
"It's nice to meet you Winston", Alyssa said politely "and I'm being serious about not underestimating me. I could knock all of your men flat on their backs within seconds".
"I'll take it under advisement", Churchill said.
"You rang?" the Doctor asked, moving his arm from around Alyssa, taking her hand. Churchill motioned them to follow as he turn and walked out the storage closet. He led them through a corridor, all of them hearing the sounds of the air raid happening above. Somehow the Doctor had managed to obtain Churchill's walking stick while they walked, tucking it under one arm.
"You've changed your face again", Churchill remarked, eyeing the Doctor.
"Yeah, well, had a bit of work done" he shrugged.
"Got it, got it, got it!" Amy cheered "Cabinet War Rooms, right?"
"Yep", the Doctor confirmed "Top secret heart of the War Office, right under London".
"You're late, by the way", Churchill informed the Doctor.
"Requisitions, sir" a young woman said coming up, handing over a clipboard.
"Excellent", Churchill checked them over.
"Late?" the Doctor asked lifting the hand that was holding Alyssa's so he could check his watch.
"I rang you a month ago", Churchill said signing the papers he'd finished checking.
"Sorry about that", Alyssa said apologetically "we would've been here not long after you called if someone hadn't been so insistent in piloting the TARDIS". She gave the Doctor a mock glare, the Time Lord having the decency to look rather apologetic himself.
Churchill hands the clipboard back to the young woman "Something the matter, Breen?" he asked noticing she looked not that happy "You look a little down in the dumps".
"No, sir" Breen hugged the clipboard "Fine, sir".
"Action this day, Breen! Action this day!" Churchill said.
"Yes, sir" Breen nodded, forcing a smile as she glanced at Amy and Alyssa before leaving.
"Excuse me, sir. Got another formation coming in, Prime Minister" an officer called over "Stukas, by the look of them".
"We shall go up top then, Group Captain!" Churchill ordered "We'll give 'em what for! Coming, Doctor?"
"Why?" the Doctor questioned.
Churchill snatched back his cane "I have something to show you", he said before walking off. The Doctor turned to Alyssa, mouthing 'ooh' getting a laugh from her and Amy. They followed Churchill into a lift. The man starting it up as soon as they were all in.
Alyssa wrinkled her nose as she waved the smoke away from Churchill's cigar. The Doctor wasn't particularly happy about that either. Amy was luckier as she was behind them, therefore not getting any smoke in her direction. "We stand at a crossroads, Doctor" Churchill began "quite alone, with our backs to the wall. Invasion is expected daily. So, I will grasp with both hands anything that will give us an advantage over the Nazi menace".
"Such as?" the Doctor asked. The lift stopped and Churchill opened the gate.
"Follow me", he instructed, exiting the lift. They all walked out onto a roof with sandbags lining the edge, a man with a white lab coat was watching the sky.
The two women looked at the scene before them, at the number of balloons and blimps tethered and waiting. "Wow", Amy breathed.
"You said it", Alyssa wholeheartedly agreed. To learn about WW2 in a classroom was one thing but to be actually there was something else entirely.
"Doctor, this is Professor Edwin Bracewell. Head of our Ironsides Project", Churchill said introducing the man in the lab coat. The Doctor held up his hand in a 'V for victory' sign earning a shake of the head from Alyssa.
"How do you do?" Bracewell waved at them before resuming his watch on the London skyline. The Doctor, Alyssa and Amy walked over to the edge as a formation of German planes approached, dropping bombs as they went.
"Ready, Bracewell?" Churchill called to the man.
"Aye aye, sir" Bracewell came him a thumbs up "On my order, fire!"
From within a sandbagged area, a laser shot out and fired at the German planes, destroying them instantly. Alyssa instantly paled, recognising that laser. "No", she breathed "not here". Her mind immediately conjured up the moment that the Doctor was shot by a Dalek, right in front of her.
"What was that?" Amy gasped.
"That wasn't human. That was never human technology" the Doctor muttered "That sounded like…Show me! Show me what that was!" he demanded running over to the ladder and climbing up it.
"Advance", Bracewell ordered.
"Our new secret weapon", Churchill said proudly as a Dalek trundled out from behind the sandbags, painted in army green, a utility belt around it with a small union flag under its eyestalk.
Alyssa stared up at it horrified. She thought she'd seen the last of them when the meta-crisis Doctor had destroyed all those Dalek ships. She thought there were no Dalek's left. How wrong she was.
Amy glanced at the Time Lady, concerned when she heard her muttering 'no' repeatedly under her breath as she backed away, her eyes fixed on the thing in front of the Doctor, her face as white as a sheet. "Ali?" she said walking towards her, very worried.
"They killed so many…they killed him…in front of me…" Alyssa gasped, her breathing becoming more erratic. Amy ran forward, grabbing hold of Alyssa by her upper arms as the red head's legs gave way.
"Doctor!" Amy shouted, sinking to the floor with a shaking Alyssa. At the ginger's shout, the Doctor tore his gaze away from the Dalek, his eyes widening at the sight of the ginger on the floor, holding onto a very pale Time Lady. He quickly clambered down the ladder nearly slipping on the rungs in his haste. The second he reached the bottom rung, he jumped off, raced across the rooftop to his fiancée and companion.
"What happened?" the Doctor demanded as he dropped to his knees beside Amy, taking the still shaking Alyssa from her.
"I don't know, she just freaked out when she saw that… thing. Before I knew it, she collapsed", Amy said worriedly.
"It's all my fault", Alyssa gasped "I should've sensed it…but I didn't. You got shot because of me!" Alyssa's grip tightened on his arm as she burst into tears "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry", she sobbed.
"It's ok", the Doctor said gently "it's not your fault". But Alyssa wasn't hearing any of it due to her hysterical state. The Doctor shifted his hold on the Time Lady and stood up. He had to get her back to the TARDIS where she'd be safe and not have to face the Daleks. He was most definitely not going to subject her to that.
"How is Miss Palmer?" Churchill asked when the Doctor entered his office. He'd been concerned about the young woman and her rather extreme reaction to Bracewell's Ironsides.
"As well as she can be after seeing a Dalek", the Doctor replied going over to the desk where diagrams, blueprints, papers and photographs laid out trying to ignore how his hearts were aching over his fiancée's reaction to the Daleks. He'd so hoped that he had seen the last of them…that they were finally free of the nightmare that was the Daleks. But once again they manage to survive. Well, he was going to make absolutely sure that they didn't escape this time around.
The only thing he could at least be grateful for…if he could be grateful to anything in this situation…is that Amy offered to stay with Alyssa to keep her company. He was glad the ginger had done this as he didn't want the Time Lady to be alone, not in the state she was in.
"Why are you calling it a Dalek?" Churchill asked.
"Because that what it's called", the Doctor answered looking up at him after examining the papers on the desk.
Churchill shook his head "They are Bracewell's Ironsides, Doctor" he insisted "Look. Blueprints, statistics, field tests, photographs" he added pointing to each one in turn "He invented them".
"Invented them?" the Time Lord scoffed "Oh, no, no, no". He knew Bracewell didn't invent them. He couldn't have, it was impossible. So how did he get the idea to 'invent' them?
"Yes. He approached one of our brass hats a few months ago. Fellow's a genius"
"He didn't invent them!" the Doctor shouted hitting his hand on the desk "They're alien".
"Alien", Churchill repeated unsure as to believe the Doctor. He could he when he had overwhelming evidence which supported the fact that one of his scientists invented them. A Dalek glided past the door causing the Doctor to tense up, glancing over his shoulder to glare at it.
"And totally hostile", he hissed as he turned back to Churchill once the Dalek had gone.
"Precisely" Churchill nodded "They will win me the war". He turned over a blueprint to reveal a propaganda poster of a large Dalek before heading out of the room. The Time Lord followed him.
"Why won't you listen to me?" the Doctor cried, frustrated with the fact that he wasn't listening "Why did you call me in if you won't listen to me?!"
"When I rang you a month ago, I must admit I had my doubts" Churchill confessed as they walked "The Ironsides seemed too good to be true".
"Yes! Right! So destroy them! Exterminate them!" the Doctor shouted, anger rising within him as Alyssa's frightened face appeared in his mind.
"But imagine what I could do with a hundred!" Churchill countered "A thousand!"
"I am imagining", the Doctor said darkly eyeing a Dalek as it trundled past with a file box balanced on its sucker.
Churchill turned off into the Map Room, the Doctor following him in. Inside of the room was a flurry of activity, groups of people manning the radio, others pushing small figures over a large map. The Time Lord stopped eyeing another Dalek at the other end of the room. That was the third one he'd seen so far. He really hoped those were the only three around. The Doctor looked away from it and strode over to Churchill, snatching the cigar from his mouth. "Winston, Winston, please", he pleaded. He had to get the man to listen to him. So many lives were at stake.
"We are waging total war, Doctor!" Churchill retorted "Day after day the Luftwaffe pound this great city like an iron fist".
"Wait till the Daleks get started", the Doctor said grimly thinking about the times the Daleks invaded Earth.
"Men, women and children slaughtered. Families torn apart. Wren's churches in flames"
"Yeah? Try the Earth in flames", the Doctor countered his mind flashing back to the Time War. He couldn't let that happen to Earth. He couldn't.
"I weep for my country. I weep for my empire. It is breaking my heart", Churchill informed him, the pain clear in his voice. He moved around the table, the Doctor going after him not about to give up in trying to get Churchill to understand.
"You're resisting, Winston! The whole world knows you're resisting! You're a beacon of hope".
"But for how long?" Churchill signed some more papers "Millions of innocent lives will be saved if I use these Ironsides now".
"Can I be of assistance?" a Dalek asked trundling up to them.
"Shut it!" the Doctor snapped. He turned to Churchill "Listen to me. Just listen!" he urged "The Daleks have no conscience, no mercy, no pity. They are my oldest and deadliest enemy. You cannot trust them!"
"If Hitler invaded hell, I would give a favourable reference to the Devil!" Churchill cried "These machines are our salvation" a siren sounded before the Doctor could say anything "Oh, the All Clear. We are safe, for now" and with that the man left, a Dalek following him.
"I wish", the Doctor muttered. He knew the Daleks were up to something and he was going to prove it.
The Doctor strode into Bracewell's lab. If he couldn't get Churchill to listen to him then he'd just have to try Bracewell, the supposed 'inventor'. Also he wanted to know how the man 'came up' with idea of the Ironsides. "All right, Prof!" he called as he checked out the equipment "Now, the PM's been filling me in. Amazing things, these Ironsides of yours" he picked up a file and started looking through it "Amazing. You must be very proud of them".
"Just doing my bit" Bracewell smiled.
"How did you do it?" the Doctor asked looking up from the file "Come up with the idea?"
"How does the muse of invention come to anyone?" Bracewell countered.
The Doctor tossed the file onto a desk "But you get a lot of these clever notions, do you?"
"Well, ideas just seem to teem from my head! Wonderful things! Like…let me show you" Bracewell moved over to a desk, the Doctor following him "Some musings on the potential of hypersonic flight" Bracewell held up a notebook which the Doctor grabbed, taking a quick look at it "Gravity bubbles that can sustain life outside of the terrestrial atmosphere" the Doctor snatched that notebook from Bracewell and skimmed the first page "Came to me in the bath".
"And are these your ideas or theirs?" the Doctor asked dropping the notebook onto the desk.
"Oh no, no, no. These robots are entirely under my control, Doctor" Bracewell assured him "They are…." a Dalek brings the scientist a cup of tea "Thank you…the perfect servant, and the perfect warrior".
"I don't know what you're up to, Professor" the Doctor said giving him a glare "but whatever they've promised, you cannot trust them! Call them what you like, the Daleks are death!"
"Yes, Doctor" Churchill called as he walked in, followed by a Dalek "Death to our enemies. Death to the forces of darkness, and death to the Third Reich!"
"Yes, Winston, and death to everyone else too!" Why weren't they listening to him? Seriously? He trying to tell them, to warn them about the Daleks but it was falling on deaf ears.
"Would you care for some tea?" the Dalek asked the Doctor. In response the Time Lord knocked the tray of its sucker.
"Stop this!" he shouted, glaring at it "What are you doing here? What do you want?"
"We seek only to help you", the Dalek replied.
"To do what?" the Doctor snapped.
"To win the war".
"Really? Which war?" the Doctor questioned.
"I do not understand", the Dalek said sounding as confused as a Dalek could.
"This war, against the Nazis" the Doctor explained "or your war? The war against the rest of the Universe? The war against all life forms that are not Dalek?"
"I do not understand. I am your soldier", the Dalek repeated.
"Oh, yeah?" the Doctor snatched up a large spanner. If he couldn't get Bracewell and Churchill to listen to him, then he would prove his point that the Daleks were bad by forcing it to show its true nature "Okay. Okay, soldier, defend yourself".
"Doctor, what the devil?!" Bracewell exclaimed as the Doctor started hitting the Dalek.
"You do not require tea?" the Dalek asked.
"Stop him! Prime Minister, please", Bracewell pleaded.
"Doctor, please, these machines are precious" Churchill tried but the Time Lord ignored him.
"Come on!" the Doctor egged the Dalek on "Fight back! You want to, don't you? You know you do".
"I must protest", Bracewell tried again.
"What are you waiting for?" the Doctor glared "Look, you hate me. You want to kill me. Well, go on. Kill me. Kill me!" he struck the Dalek again.
"Please desist from striking me" the Dalek requested "I am your soldier".
"You are my enemy!" the Doctor hit it again with every word, his hearts racing, anger burning inside him for his hatred of the Daleks "And I am yours! You are everything I despise! The worst thing in all creation. I've defeated you time and time again, I've defeated you. I sent you back into the Void! I saved the whole of reality from you! I am the Doctor! And you are the Daleks!"
With one hard kick, the Doctor sent the Dalek rolling backwards. "Correct" the Dalek swivelled back to him "Review testimony".
The Time Lord frowned when he heard his voice being played back "'I am the Doctor! And you are the Daleks!'"
"Testimony. What are you talking about, testimony?" the Doctor asked.
"Transmitting testimony now", a second Dalek stated.
"Transmit what, where?" the Doctor asked confused as to why they needed his testimony. A moment later the second Dalek announced
"Testimony accepted!"
"Get back! All of you!" the Doctor ordered backing away from the Dalek.
"Marines!" Churchill called "Marines, get in here!"
Two Marines entered the room but were promptly shot by one of the Daleks.
"Stop it! Stop it, please!" Bracewell shouted, not understanding why his creation was turning on them "What are you doing? You are my Ironsides".
"We are the Daleks", one of the Daleks said correcting him.
"But I created you!"
"No" one of the Daleks shot Bracewell's hand, revealing a stump of wires and metal "We created you!"
"Victory!" both Daleks shouted together "Victory! Victory!"
And then they disappeared, teleporting out. The Doctor stared at where they once were, horrified. He wanted to know what their plan was. Turned out he was their plan.
The Doctor ran out of the room, heading straight for the TARDIS. As if the box could sense his urgency, the door unlocked, swinging open. Inside both women were sitting on the steps, waiting for him. "Good you're both here. I need you to leave", he said going past them to the console. Both women stood up at that.
"Why?" Amy asked.
"Didn't you stop the Daleks?" Alyssa asked.
"No, not yet. Long story short I wanted to know what their plan was and it turned out it was me all along. Now I've got to go after them, so I need you two to leave", the Doctor said quickly.
"I'm not going anywhere Doctor", Alyssa said going up the steps "if you're going to face the Daleks, I'm coming with you".
"Ali, you can't it's not safe", the Doctor said "especially not in your condition".
The Time Lady shot him a look "I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself, despite being pregnant. Besides if the Daleks decide to get all shooty, I can protect us", she said. The Doctor sighed, seeing that she wasn't going to be easily deterred.
"Fine" he glanced at Amy "but you're staying behind". The ginger opened her mouth to protest when Alyssa spoke.
"He's right Amy, you should stay here. We will be back for you, that's a promise".
"Ali, no offense but you promised you'd be back before", Amy said "and you let me down".
The Time Lady stepped toward the ginger, taking off her bracelet "here" she held it out "this is my promise that'll we will come back". Amy put the bracelet into her pocket and the two Time Lords watched as she left the TARDIS.
"How about that cuppa now, then?" the Doctor asked rubbing his hands together as he stepped out of the TARDIS. Alyssa followed closely behind him.
"It is the Doctor", the gold Dalek announced.
"Exterminate!" 1st AG Dalek shouted.
"Wait, wait, wait. I wouldn't if I were you!" the Doctor warned pulling out a jammy dodger from his pocket, held it out in front of him making sure that Alyssa was firmly behind him. Though she could easily defend herself, he didn't want these Daleks to know about her abilities. Plus there was the whole thing of her being pregnant as well. That putting him even more on edge. "TARDIS self-destruct, and you know what that means. My ship goes, you all go with it".
"You would not use such a device", 2nd AG Dalek said, not believing him.
"Try me", the Doctor challenged. 1st AG Dalek rolled forward, the Doctor turning towards it, holding out the jammy dodger "Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. No scans. No nothing" he said looking between each one "One move and I'll destroy us all, you got that? TARDIS bang bang, Daleks boom!" the Dalek moved back "Good boy". The Doctor looked at the instrument panels "This ship's pretty beaten up" he remarked eyeing the rusted panel "Running on empty, I'd say, like you" he walked around it, making sure that Alyssa was with him. "When we last met, you were at the end of your rope. Finished".
"One ship survived", 2nd AG Dalek informed him.
"And you fell back through time, yes?" the Doctor nodded "Crippled, dying?"
"We picked up a trace. One of the Progenitor devices", 2nd AG Dalek told him.
"Progenitor? What's that when it's at home?" the Doctor asked, not having heard of it before.
"It is our past, and our future", 2nd AG Dalek replied.
"Ohhh, that's deep. That is deep for a Dalek", the Doctor remarked a bit surprised at that "don't you think, love?"
"Yeah that is pretty deep dear", Alyssa answered "What does it mean, though?" she asked the Daleks.
"It contains pure Dalek DNA" the gold Dalek explained "Thousands were created. All were lost, save one".
"Okay, but there's still one thing I don't get, though. If you've got the Progenitor, why build Bracewell?" the Doctor asked.
"Bracewell was a robot?" Alyssa asked surprised.
"Yes he is", the Doctor answered.
"It was…necessary", 2nd AG Dalek admitted.
"But why?" he asked, then it hit him "I get it. Oh, I get it! I get it. Oh ho, this is rich!" he laughed "The Progenitor wouldn't recognise you, would it? It saw you as impure. Your DNA is unrecognisable as Dalek".
"A solution was devised", 1st AG Dalek said.
"Yes, yes, yes. Me. My testimony. So you set a trap" the Doctor said figuring it out, why they needed his testimony "You knew that the Progenitor would recognise me, the Daleks' greatest enemy. It would accept my word. My recognition of you". The 1st AG Dalek turned to the instrument panel behind it. "No. No, no. What are you doing?" the Doctor demanded, holding out the jammy dodger.
"Withdraw now, or the city dies in flames", the gold Dalek threatened.
"Who are you kidding?" the Doctor scoffed "This ship is a wreck. You don't have the power to destroy London".
"Watch as the humans destroy themselves", the gold Dalek said. A dish on the outside of the ship lowers and shoots out a beam of energy towards London. The Doctor and Alyssa watched as all of London suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree.
"Amy's down there", Alyssa breathed, now very afraid for the girl. The Doctor spun around and brandished the jammy dodger.
"Turn those lights off now!" the Doctor demanded brandishing the jammy dodger "Turn London off or I swear I will use the TARDIS self-destruct!"
"He's not joking", Alyssa added. She could sense his anger…his seriousness. If she didn't know that the 'TARDIS self-destruct' was just a jammy dodger, she was sure that he was completely serious about blowing up the blue box.
"Stalemate, Doctor" 2nd AG Dalek said. It knew the Doctor wouldn't use the self-destruct just it knew they weren't going to turn London's lights off "Leave us and return to Earth".
"Oh, that's it. That's your great victory? You leave?" the Doctor spat out.
"Extinction is not an option. We shall return to our own time and begin again", 2nd AG Dalek said.
"No, no, no! I won't let you get away this time! I won't!" the Doctor shouted. He couldn't let them go. If he did they could come back, stronger than ever. He HAD to end it, here and now.
There was a mechanical whoosh and then a soft thrumming.
"We have succeeded. DNA reconstruction is complete", 2nd AG Dalek announced.
The three Daleks moved back from a set of doors, now glowing with a red energy. The doors slide open a moment later. "Observe, a new Dalek paradigm" 1st AG Dalek said sounding as excited as a Dalek could get.
Alyssa clutched the Doctor's arm as 5 new, larger and brightly coloured Daleks emerge one by one from the Progenitor cabinet "The Progenitor has fulfilled our new destiny. Behold, the restoration of the Daleks. The resurrection of the master race" 2nd AG Dalek declared.
The Doctor gently squeezed Alyssa's hand, the one that was tightly holding his arm. He too was horrified at the new Daleks. They watched as the old Daleks praised the newly created ones. "All hail the new Daleks. All hail the new Daleks!"
"Yes, you are inferior!" the white Dalek announced, its voice deeper and more menacing.
"Yes"
"Then prepare".
"We are ready!" the three old Daleks stated.
"Cleanse the unclean! Total obliteration! Disintegrate!" the white Dalek ordered.
The blue and red Daleks fired at the two army green Daleks and the lone gold one, destroying them completely. Alyssa jumped, rather startled by this turn of events. The Doctor was just as surprised as she was.
"Blimey. What do you do to the ones who mess up?" the Doctor remarked.
"You are the Doctor!" the white Dalek said turning back to him "You must be exterminated!"
The Doctor tugged Alyssa behind himself and then held out the jammy dodger "Don't mess with me, sweetheart", he warned.
"We are the paradigm of a new Dalek race", the white Dalek announced "Scientist, Strategist, Drone, Eternal and the Supreme".
"Which would be you, I'm guessing?" the Doctor said eyeing him "Well, you know, nice paint job. I'd be feeling pretty swish if I looked like you. Pretty 'Supr-eme'".
Alyssa lightly whacked the back of his head "not sure goading them is the best idea", she said.
"Question is, what do we do now?" the Doctor asked, ignoring the fact that his fiancée had just hit him "either you turn off your clever machine, or I'll blow you and your new paradigm into eternity".
"You would not kill yourself, or the female", the white Dalek said.
"I've already died once", Alyssa spoke up "and I'd do it all again if it meant stopping you lot". That made the Doctor very uneasy. Yes, he was only bluffing…but how his hearts stopped at her words. He'd never want her to give up her life like that. Never. Especially when she was carrying his child.
"Scan reveals the item in your hand is not a TARDIS self-destruct device" the blue Dalek stated "It is non-existent".
The Doctor took a bite of the jammy dodger away "All right, it's a Jammy Dodger, but I was promised tea", he said.
Suddenly an alarm sounded. The blue Dalek goes to the scanner "Alert! Unidentified projectile approaching!" it announced. The Doctor went over to a second scanner "Correction, multiple projectiles!" the blue Dalek said correcting himself.
"What have the humans done?" the white Daleks asked.
"I don't know", the Doctor replied as he looked at the multiple blips on the scanner. Alyssa frowned at the scanner too. What were they doing?
"Explain! Explain! Explain!" the white Dalek demanded.
"Danny Boy to the Doctor-Ali!" a pilot's voice called over the speakers "Danny Boy to the Doctor-Ali! Are you receiving me? Over".
"Oh ho! Winston, you beauty!" the Doctor cheered happily.
"Danny Boy to the Doctor-Ali! Come in. Over" the pilot repeated.
"We hear you Danny Boy!" Alyssa called back, just as happy at the Time Lord.
"Big dish, side of the ship", the Doctor added "Blow it up! Over!" and with that he and Alyssa made a run for the TARDIS, the Dalek's opening fire on them. Alyssa used her powers to ensure that the Dalek's deadly rays didn't meet their target.
By the time the Time Lords had made it to the TARDIS and patched into the transmission so that they could communicate with the pilots, only one was left. "Danny Boy to the Doctor-Ali …only me left now. Anything you can do, sir, ma'am. Over".
The Doctor glanced at Alyssa who nodded "we can disrupt the shields temporarily", she said, having been told how to be the TARDIS.
The Time Lord picked up small microphone and spoke into it as Alyssa frantically worked at the controls. "The Doctor to Danny Boy. The Doctor to Danny Boy. Ali is working to disrupt the shields but once they're done it won't be for very long", the Doctor told Danny Boy.
"Good show. Go to it. Over", the pilot said.
"Done", Alyssa said to the Doctor.
"The Doctor to Danny Boy the shields have been disrupted", the Time Lord said into microphone.
"I'm going in. Wish me luck. Over", the pilot said.
"Good luck Danny Boy". The pair only had to wait a moment before the pilot shouted happily.
"Direct hit! The dish is gone!" The Doctor and Alyssa laughed in delight at the news "Danny Boy to the Doctor…going in for another attack", the pilot told them.
"The Doctor to Danny Boy. The Doctor to Danny Boy. Destroy this ship!" the Doctor commanded "Over".
"What about you, two?" Danny Boy questioned.
"We'll be okay", the Doctor replied putting an arm around Alyssa, kissing her temple.
Suddenly the white Dalek appeared on the large circular screen in the TARDIS wall "Doctor, call off your attack", it ordered.
"Ah ha, what?" the Doctor laughed "and let you scuttle off back to the future? No fear. This is the end for you. The final end", he said leaning against the railing.
"Call off the attack, or we will destroy the Earth" the white Dalek threatened.
Alyssa scoffed "You just played your last card. No dish means no way to turn on London's lights. Ergo, you're a bit buggered", she said.
"Bracewell is a bomb" the white Dalek informed them.
"You're bluffing", he said "Deception's second nature to you. There isn't a sincere bone in your body" he thought about what he said and then corrected himself "there isn't a bone in your body".
"His power is derived from an Oblivion Continuum" the white Dalek told him "Call off your attack, or we will detonate the android" it threatened.
"Maybe we should let them go", Alyssa said quietly.
"No. They killed you", the Doctor said "I'm not letting them go" and with that he walked over to the console, turning on the scanner to address the Dalek on it "You're last of the Daleks. I can rid the Universe of you, once and for all". This was his only chance to end it. No more Daleks. No more suffering. Millions of lives will be saved if the Daleks were no more. Alyssa would be safe. That's all that really mattered to him, that she was safe. That their child was safe. Yes, he cared about all the other humans but the woman he loved with all his hearts came first. She would always come first, no matter what, as would their baby.
"Then do it" the white Dalek challenged "But we will shatter the planet below. The Earth will die screaming".
"Yeah, and if I let you go, you'll be stronger than ever" the Doctor countered glaring at the screen "A new race of Daleks".
"Then choose Doctor. Destroy the Daleks or save the Earth" the white Dalek taunted "Begin countdown of Oblivion Continuum. Choose, Doctor! Choose! Choose!"
Alyssa snatched up the microphone "Ali to Danny Boy. Withdraw", she ordered.
"Say again, ma'am. Over"
"Withdraw!" Alyssa shouted "Return to Earth. Over and out".
"But ma'am…!" the pilot protested.
"There's no time" Alyssa snapped "You have to return to Earth now! Over!"
"Ali I don't think you should've done that", the Doctor said.
"I don't care. I don't want to lose my home", Alyssa shot back, dropping the microphone and started to frantically pilot the TARDIS back to earth. The Doctor helped her out as best as he could which wasn't easy given the panicked state she was in. He understood her desire to protect the Earth, it was her home after all. And in some ways it was his home too. While he'd have rather stopped the Daleks then and there, he was willing to put it on hold in order to stop the bomb and save the planet.
The moment it landed in the storage room, Alyssa was out of the door, racing down the corridor to the Map Room, the Doctor hurrying after her. She burst into the Map Room and with a flick of the wrist, she had Bracewell on his back. "Ali!" Amy exclaimed, appalled.
"Sorry, Professor, but you're a Dalek bomb", Alyssa said crouching down beside him.
"What?" Bracewell asked shocked.
"There's an Oblivion Continuum inside you. A captured wormhole that provides perpetual power. Detonate that, and the Earth will bleed through into another dimension" the Doctor explained quickly kneeling down next to Alyssa "Now keep down".
He flashed his sonic over Bracewell's torso to open it up. "Well?" Amy asked as one of the five blue segments of the circle turned yellow.
"I dunno know, I dunno know, I dunno know" the Doctor said panicking. He had good reason to be. His fiancée was in the room with a very powerful bomb that could destroy the Earth "Never seen one up close before".
"So what, they've wired him up to detonate?" Amy questioned, trying to understand what he was saying.
"Oh no, not wired him up. He is a bomb" the Doctor corrected her "Walking, talking" he made an exploding sound effect "exploding! The moment that flashes red".
"There's…a blue wire or something you have to cut, isn't there?" the ginger offered "There's always a blue wire" the Doctor stood up "Or a red one".
"You're not helping!" he snapped.
"Doctor…" Alyssa said in a warning tone, giving him a look.
"Sorry", the Doctor muttered. He felt bad for snapping at Amy, he knew she was trying to help but he was too worried about the current danger to the woman he planned to marry to be polite.
"It's incredible. He talked to us about his memories. The Great War…"Churchill said looking down at Bracewell in wonder.
"Someone else's stolen thoughts, implanted in a positronic brain", the Doctor said, tossing the sonic back and forth between his hands, his mind and hearts racing as he tried to figure out how to disarm Bracewell "Tell me about it. Bracewell. Tell me about your life!" he knelt back down.
"Doctor, I really don't think this is the time!" Bracewell said.
"Tell me and prove you're human. Tell me everything", the Doctor ordered. If Bracewell believed that he was human then the bomb wouldn't explode. Or at least he really hoped that was the case.
One of the sections was already red, the second segment of the circle now turned yellow.
"My family ran the Post Office. It's a little place just near the abbey, just by the ash trees. There used to be eight trees but…but there was a storm", Bracewell said in a strained voice.
"And your parents? Come on, tell me", the Doctor encouraged.
"Good people. Kind people. They died. Scarlet fever", Bracewell told them, tears in his eyes. Alyssa looked down at him sympathetically, familiar with the pain of loss.
"What was that like? How did it feel? How did it make you feel, Edwin? Tell me. Tell me now", the Doctor urged.
"It hurt. It hurt, Doctor, it hurt so badly" Amy took hold of Alyssa's hand as she saw the red head tear up "It was like a wound. I thought it was worse than a wound. Like I'd been emptied out" Alyssa closed her eyes, tears slipping down her face. What he felt over the deaths of his parents, is exactly how she felt over the loss of her grandmother. She felt like she wanted to die…in fact she had tried to take her own life. She wasn't proud of that fact but she was at least grateful that she hadn't succeeded. If she had, then she would never have met the Doctor. "There was nothing left", Bracewell said as he cried, remembering.
The second segment of the circle turn red, the third turning yellow.
"Good. Remember it now, Edwin" the Doctor pressed "The ash trees by the Post Office and your mum and dad, and losing them, and men in the trenches you saw die…Remember it. Feel it. You feel it because you're human" the third segment turns red "You're not like them. You're not like the Daleks!"
"It hurts, Doctor! It hurts so much!" Bracewell gasped as he continued to cry. Alyssa tightened her hand around Amy's and opened her eyes.
"Good! Good! Good! Brilliant! Embrace it" the fourth section turned red "That means you're alive! They cannot explode that bomb, you're a human being! You are flesh and blood! They cannot explode that bomb! Believe it! You are Professor Edwin Bracewell! And you, my friend, are a human being!" the fifth section turned yellow "It's not working! I can't stop it!" the Doctor exclaimed.
"Go on", Alyssa said to Amy, seeing the look on her face "help him". The ginger woman let go of her hand, went over and knelt beside Bracewell.
"Hey" she said softly "Ever fancied someone you know you shouldn't?"
"W…what?" Bracewell looked at her.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Amy asked, the last segment of the circle remained yellow "But kind of a good hurt".
"I really shouldn't talk about her", Bracewell said.
"Oh. There's a her", Amy teased with a smile as the fifth section turned back to blue.
"What was her name?" the Doctor asked seeing where Amy was going.
"Dorabella", Bracewell breathed out.
"That's a beautiful name", Alyssa commented "What was she like, Edwin?"
"Oh…such a smile…And her eyes….Her eyes were so blue…Almost violet, like the last touch of sunset on the edge of the world….Dorabella…" Bracewell sighed with a dreamy look on his face. Then all the segments turned blue.
"Welcome to the human race", the Doctor said happy that the bomb had been disarmed. He glanced at Alyssa, his smile dropping at the sight of tear stains on her cheeks. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"Elizabeth…Ellie", she replied simply. The Doctor's eyes widened at that. Oh, he was so stupid! He knew that she'd lost both her gran and her best friend. Both deaths had hit her hard. She'd started to cope with it, started to move on…then he had to go and urge Bracewell to talk about losing his parents which of course brought it all back for the Time Lady.
"Love, I'm sorry", the Doctor breathed putting his arms around her "I'm so sorry". Alyssa closed her eyes, seeking the comfort his embrace provided.
As a new day dawned over London, the Air Raid Warden and a few troops raised the flagpole with a Union Flag. Once it was upright, they all saluted it proudly.
In the Map Room, things were a lot quieter. "So, what now, then?" Amy asked Churchill.
"I still have a war to run, Miss Pond", the man replied.
"Prime Minister" a young woman handed over some papers to Churchill.
"Oh, thank you" he read the document "Oh, they hit the Palace and Saint Paul's again. Fire crews only just saved it" Churchill reported right before Breen burst into tears.
"Is she okay?" Amy asked looking over at the woman, concerned.
"What?" Churchill asked looking up from the papers.
"She looks very upset" Amy gestured over to Breen who was being comforted by another woman.
"Oh, Miss Breen? Her young man didn't make it, I'm afraid. Just got word. Shot down over the Channel" Churchill explained sadly "Where's the Doctor? And Miss Palmer?"
"Tying up loose ends", the Doctor called walking in with Alyssa, holding her hand. He'd barley let go of her since Bracewell told them that the Daleks had gotten away "I've taken out all the alien tech Bracewell put in".
"Won't you reconsider, Doctor? Those Spitfires would win me the war in twenty hours", Churchill pleaded.
"Exactly", the Doctor said knowing that the war had to continue on for a few more years, like it's supposed to.
"But why not? Why can't we put an end to all this misery?" Churchill questioned wondering why the Doctor would be against him having all that amazing technology.
"Oh, it doesn't work like that, Winston, and it's going to be tough" the Doctor said truthfully "There are terrible days to come. The darkest days. But you can do it. You know you can".
"Stay with us and help us win through. The world needs you" Churchill knew what a valuable ally the Doctor would be for their cause.
"The world doesn't need me", the Doctor said. There was someone who needs me more right now he thought looking at Alyssa from the corner of his eye. He'd made a mental note to take her somewhere nice to get her mind off of all of this…Rio perhaps? Or maybe back to Iceland to look at the Northern Lights…she loved those.
"No?" Churchill looked less than convinced.
"The world's got Winston Spencer Churchill", the Doctor said with a smile making the 'v for victory' sign.
"It's been a pleasure, Doctor, as always" Churchill put the papers down on the desk.
"Too right", the Doctor agreed. Churchill opened his arms and the Doctor let go of Alyssa's hand so he could give the man a hug.
"Goodbye, Doctor", Churchill said.
"Oh, shall we say adieu?" the Doctor said and they ended the hug. Churchill turned to Alyssa.
"Goodbye Miss Palmer", he said. Alyssa stepped up and hugged the man.
"It has honestly been an honour to meet you", she said honestly as she stepped back. Churchill smiled at her before moving onto Amy.
"Goodbye, Miss Pond"
"It's…it's been amazing, meeting you", Amy said gripping her hands under her chin.
"I'm sure it has", Churchill said as the ginger kissed his cheek. After they'd separated, Churchill turned and started to walk away. That is until Amy called after him
"Oi, Churchill. TARDIS key" she held out her hand "the one you just took from the Doctor". The Doctor looked at her surprised but when he checked for the key in her pockets, he came up empty.
Churchill turned back "Oh, she's good, Doctor. As sharp as a pin. Almost as sharp as me" he put his hand in his pocket and frowned when he couldn't find it. Alyssa smiled and held up the key.
"Took it from your pocket when we hugged", she said giving it back to the Doctor. Who still had a surprised look on his face.
"Very good Miss Palmer", Churchill said with a smile "KBO", he added before turning and walking out of the room to get back to the war.
"Look like we got a little pickpocket on our hands, eh Doctor?" Amy remarked nudging the Time Lord.
"I'm not going to make a habit of it Amy", Alyssa promised "it'll only be used when someone tries to take the TARDIS key from the Doctor".
Before leaving, the trio stopped off at Bracewell's lab. "I've been expecting you, Doctor. I knew this moment had to come", Bracewell said when he noticed them enter.
"Moment?" the Doctor asked.
"It's time to deactivate me" Alyssa and Amy looked at the Doctor wondering if he was going to de-activate him. Despite him being Dalek technology, he wasn't a danger to anyone.
"Is…it? Oh…yeah" the Doctor nodded his head slowly.
"You have no choice. I'm Dalek technology. Can't allow me to go pottering around down here where I have no business", Bracewell said.
"No, you're dead right, Professor" the Doctor agreed "A hundred percent right. And by the time I get back here in what, 10 minutes?" he looked at Alyssa and Amy, giving them a wink so they knew he wasn't going to deactivate Bracewell.
"More like 15", Amy corrected him, playing along.
"15 minutes, yeah, that's exactly what I'm going to do. You are going to be so de-activated. It's going be like you've never even been…activated".
"Yeah", Alyssa said nodding.
"15 minutes?" Bracewell repeated.
"More like 20, if I'm honest. Once Pond, Ali and I see to the urgent thing…we've got to see to. The…the…see?" the Doctor said giving him a pointed look.
"Very well, Doctor. I shall wait here and prepare myself", Bracewell said standing up straight. The Doctor, Amy and Alyssa exchanged looks. Bracewell still hadn't gotten the hint.
"That Dalek tech a bit slow on the uptake", Amy said quietly to the Doctor and Alyssa, who nodded in agreement.
"That thing we've got to do, going to take half an hour, realistically, isn't it, dear?" the Time Lady asked.
"Easily! So no running off, that's what I'm saying. Don't go trying to find that little Post Office with the ash trees or that girl…what was her name?"
"Dorabella", Bracewell answered confused, wondering why he was bringing all this up.
"Dorabella", the Doctor repeated "On no account go looking for her. Mind you, you can get a lot done in half an hour".
Bracewell laughed in delight as he finally realized what they were trying to tell him. "Thank you. Thank you, Doctor!" he said happily.
"Come along, Pond, Ali", the Doctor said taking Alyssa's hand and they walked out of the room.
"So, you two have enemies then?" Amy commented as they approached the TARDIS.
"Everyone's got enemies", The Doctor replied leaning against the TARDIS, Alyssa leaning against him as he put his arm around her waist.
"Yeah, but mine's the woman outside Budgens with the mental Jack Russell. You've got, like, you know, arch-enemies", Amy said leaning against the TARDIS also.
"Suppose so", he agreed.
"And here's me thinking we'd just be running through time, being daft and fixing stuff. But no, it's dangerous", Amy said looking at him.
"Yep. Very. Is that a problem?"
"Nope", Amy replied "You're worried about the Daleks", she added after a moment of silence.
"I'm always worried about the Daleks", the Doctor said honestly, his arm tightening slightly around Alyssa.
"It'll take time though, won't it? I mean, there's still not many of them. They'll need a while to build themselves up", Amy said trying to see a positive about the situation.
"It's not that. There's something else. Something we've forgotten" the Doctor looked at her over Alyssa's head "Or rather you have".
"Me?" Amy asked in confusion.
"You didn't remember the Daleks", Alyssa said quietly "You'd never seen them before".
"And like Ali, you should have done" the Doctor added in a grave voice "You should" and with that he let go of Alyssa, unlocked the TARDIS and stepped inside. Alyssa entered next, followed by a still confused Amy.
(First army green Dalek – 1st AG Dalek.
Second army green Dalek – 2nd AG Dalek.)