The Time Lord Oracle: Definitely will see this crossover in the other story.
NicoleR85: thanks
Alyssa lay on the bed in the med bay and stayed as still as possible while the Doctor scanned her. He wanted to make sure that Moira hadn't done anything to harm her or the baby while attempting to take possession of her body. "Whats the verdict?" she asked sitting up as the Doctor checked through the results.
"Both of you are perfectly fine", the Doctor answered.
The Time Lady let out a relieved breath "That's good", she said, she sat up on her elbows "out of interest how far along am I?"
"Probably a couple of months", the Time Lord replied.
"And this'll probably sound like a stupid question but how long is the pregnancy going to be? Is it the same as humans?" Alyssa queried.
"Actually its 18 months", the Doctor confessed and the Time Lady's eyebrows shot up.
"18 months?!" she exclaimed "bloody hell". She hadn't expected to be carrying a baby inside of her for a year and a half.
"It'll be ok, love", the Doctor softly, sitting on the edge of the bed "I'm going to be with you every step of the way". At those words, Alyssa kissed him.
"Thank you", she said "to be honest I'm a little scared. Even more so than when I found out that I was slowly being changed into a Time Lady". Now that the reality of her pregnancy had finally sunk in, she was afraid that she wasn't ready to become a mother and that when the baby arrived, she was going to do a bad job of raising him/her.
"That's understandable. You've not done this before and it can be a bit scary, believe me, I know", the Doctor said.
"What if I'm a bad mother?" Alyssa mumbled to herself.
"Now, that's impossible. You could never be a bad mother. You're an amazing, brilliant woman turned Time Lady with strong maternal instincts. Our son or daughter cannot be in better hands", the Doctor said touching her face.
The Time Lady smiled, happy tears in her eyes. "God, I love you", she declared, kissing him again "I love you so much".
"I love you too", the Doctor said. Alyssa laid down on the bed, patting the free space. The Time Lord didn't hesitate to lay down next to her. It wasn't long before the Time Lady fell asleep, still rather tired from the ordeal she went through.
Alyssa shifted, resting her head on the Doctor's chest, the Time Lord putting a protective arm around her. He really couldn't wait for their son or daughter to be born in 16 months' time. There was so much he wanted to teach their child about the wonders of the universe. He also wondered what they would call their baby. Perhaps Ellie after Alyssa's former best friend? Or Elizabeth after her grandmother? Maybe a male equivalent if it was a boy…
All these things to think about over the remainder of Alyssa's pregnancy. As well as whether or not to make a mini sonic for him or her. That he most likely would have to talk with his fiancée about. He didn't think she'd appreciate him making one without discussing it with her first. His thoughts were abruptly cut off when he unexpectedly fell asleep.
"Mmm…that's nice", Alyssa murmured feeling the Doctor lightly trace patterns on her bare back. After their rather…disastrous beach holiday, the Time Lord decided to take her back to Iceland to see the Northern Lights once more. One thing led to another and the engaged couple ended up back in their bedroom.
"Yeah?" the Doctor asked continuing his featherlight patterns on her skin.
Alyssa opened her eyes and smiled softly at him "yeah", she agreed "and thank you for taking me back there, it was just what I needed after Tahiti".
"You're welcome, love", the Doctor said kissing her forehead.
"You know, with all these adventures we've been having, I'm surprised I didn't end up pregnant sooner", Alyssa remarked after a moment.
"Same", the Doctor agreed "but I'm glad you are".
Alyssa smiled "me too", she said. His assurances the other day had soothed her worries over. The Time Lady laughed when the Doctor tugged her on top of him and started kissing her face. "Doctor, we can't", Alyssa said as his hands settled on her hips "Amy…"
"I don't think we need Amy's permission, love to continue this", the Doctor gently cut in.
"No but…" Alyssa's breath hitched as the Time Lord pressed kisses to her neck, teeth barely grazing her skin "we did promise that we'd take her to a planet after the trip to Iceland. That was a good few hours ago".
"We'll take her on a trip in an hour, ok?" the Doctor suggested.
"Ok", Alyssa agreed.
"Good", the Doctor said and started to kiss her again.
Amy trailed behind the Doctor and Alyssa, none too impressed by the place the Time Lords had taken her. She'd wanted to go to a planet not some dusty museum. Alyssa glanced back at Amy, clearly sensing her boredom and irritation. "You think we can go to a planet after this?" she asked her fiancé quietly "our companion is pretty bored".
"We'll go as soon as we're done here", the Doctor said looking at Amy "promise". The ginger gave him a tight smile . She wished she could believe him but they both had promised that they'd be back in 5 minutes and it ended up being 12 years. "Wrong!" the Doctor said pointing at a random object as he and Alyssa walked hand in hand "Wrong!"
"What about that one?" Alyssa asked nodding to something in a display case as they passed.
"Bit right" the Doctor told her "but mostly wrong. I love museums".
"So do I", Alyssa agreed "I prefer art museums though".
"Is that why you got that job? Because you love art?" the Doctor questioned.
"In part", Alyssa answered.
"You've got a job?" Amy spoke up, surprised.
"Yeah, I work at the British Museum, conserving pieces of art", Alyssa explained. She stopped when a thought occurred to her "actually I don't even know if I've still got the job. Haven't been in a while…should probably stop by hand and in my notice…" she murmured "shame, I worked hard to get that job".
"Maybe you can still work there", the Doctor said "the arrangement you made before would still work now".
"Only way I'm gonna know is if I go", Alyssa pointed out.
"We can go after we're done here", the Doctor offered.
"Uh, no, dear. Did you forget? We're taking Amy to a planet next", Alyssa reminded him.
"Oh yeah…." The Doctor realised.
The Time Lady shook her head fondly at him "Doctor, I love you but sometimes you can be a bit forgetful and occasionally oblivious", she said kissing his cheek before she wandered off to check out some of the other displays.
She paused by one square shaped display case where metal cube sat inside. Her eyes widened at what was engraved on the top. "It can't be", she breathed. She glanced up at the Doctor who was peering at another display case "dear, could you come here a moment?" she called. The Time Lord walked over to her. "Does this say what I think it says?" she asked pointing to the cube.
The Doctor glanced down at the cube, his eyes widened at the inscription. "Oh great, on old box", Amy said, joining the pair, looking none to impressed about it.
"It's not an old box. It's a Home Box", the Doctor corrected, still rather in shock in the message on the top of it.
"What's a Home Box?" Amy asked.
"Like a black box on a plane, except it homes" the Doctor explained "Anything happens to the ship, the Home Box flies home with all the flight data".
"And the weird patterny thing?" Amy questioned eyeing it. Both Time Lords appeared to be rather…shocked over it and she didn't understand why.
"The writing, the graffiti. Old High Gallifreyan" the Doctor told her "The lost language of the Time Lords".
"How can I understand it then?" Alyssa asked.
"Well you are a Time Lady Ali", Amy pointed out.
"Yes, but I've not long been a Time Lady", Alyssa said to the ginger "I shouldn't be able to understand something like that…should I Doctor?"
"Usually I'd say no but as you are the TARDIS' daughter…" Amy looked at them both with a confused look on her face at that "…there's probably a few things that you'll understand, even more than I do in some respects".
"So…um…what does it say?" Amy questioned, curious.
"Hello, Lyssa", the Doctor replied. The red head straightened up at that. She knew River was the one to leave the message, she was the only one who called her that.
"We should take it", Alyssa suggested.
"No", the Doctor said quickly and firmly.
"Doctor, she left it there for a reason", the Time Lady told him "what if she needs our help?"
"Don't care. Remember the Valiant?" the Doctor shot back.
Alyssa sighed "are you still going to hold it against her?" she asked "that was ages ago".
"She almost got you killed", the Time Lord reminded her "I will never forgive her for that. Never".
Alyssa sighed again, there was going to be no reasoning with him on this. When it came to her safety and wellbeing, he took it very seriously when anyone jeopardised it in anyway. She glanced back down at the Home Box "well, I'm taking it anyway", she stated before she smashed the glass with her powers and snatched up the Home Box. The trio raced back to the TARDIS, managing to get into the ship before the guards reached them.
"That was a very bad idea. Who knows what trouble River will drag us into?" the Doctor said as Alyssa threw the lever to send them into the time vortex.
"Well, I for one want to find out what she wants", his fiancée retorted "either help or stand there like a lemon and I'll do it all".
The Doctor grumbled but proceeded to attach the Home Box to the console. "Why are you doing that if you're not happy with whoever left that message?" Amy asked watching him work.
"It's better to help than not. I don't want the mother of my child to wander into danger alone", the Time Lord replied. He connected the last wire and reported that he finished with "I've got it, love". Alyssa joined them around the other side just as a grainy black and white video feed began to play on the scanner. They watched as River Song, wearing a formal dress, pulled down her sunglasses and winked at the camera. The feed switched to one which showed the back of River.
"Wait…is that?" Alyssa asked, noticing a familiar male figure step into view next to the curly haired woman.
"Yes, yes it is", the Doctor confirmed. This was just great. Not only is River present but my Metacrisis as well he thought with a grumble. "The party's over, Doctor Song, Mr Sven" the Time Lords exchanged surprised looks "…yet still you both are on board".
River turned around "Sorry, Alistair" she said, not sounding sorry at all "we needed to see what was in your vault. Do you all know what's down there? Any of you? Because I'll tell you something. This ship won't reach its destination".
"Wait till they take off " Alistair ordered "Don't make it look like an execution".
River Song glanced at her watch "Triple-seven five slash, three, four, nine by ten" the Doctor, Amy and Alyssa glanced at each other "Zero twelve slash acorn".
"Oh and an air corridor would come in handy", James added.
"What was that? What did Doctor Song say?" Amy asked as Alyssa started to type on the keyboard.
"Coordinates", Alyssa replied "dear, get the door for River and James please", she said. The Doctor hesitated for a moment, actually considering leaving the two of them out in space but then he realised that his fiancée would never forgive him for it. And considering her new status as a Time Lady, to never be forgiven for anything is the worst possible thing imaginable.
He darted for the door, yanking it open and held out his hand. The Doctor reached out for River, grasping her hand and pulled her inside, both of them falling to the floor. James hopped into the TARDIS, smiling at Alyssa.
"Hello Ali", he greeted.
"Hey", Alyssa greeted back.
"Follow that ship!" River ordered, getting to her feet.
"Yes, ma'am", the Time Lady said.
Amy and James watched as Alyssa, the Doctor and River all worked frantically at the console. The metacrisis had tried to help them but with a look from the Time Lord, he decided that it would be best to just watch "They've gone into warp drive, we're losing them! Stay close!" River said noticing this on the scanner.
"We're trying River!" the Doctor shouted.
"Is not as easy as it looks", Alyssa added. Which was completely true, it wasn't easy trying to keep up with what the TARDIS was telling her to do AND with what the River and Doctor was doing as well.
"Use the stabilisers Lyssa", River suggested. The red head stilled her rapid movements and stared at her. Stabilisers! Of course! The Time Lady internally smacked her forehead. She knew about the stabilisers but never used them as the Doctor preferred a bumpy ride through the time vortex.
"There aren't any stabilisers", the Doctor retorted as Alyssa reached for them.
"The blue switches", River said nodding to the blue buttons.
"Oh, the blue ones don't do anything, they're just…blue", the Doctor said waving her off.
"Dear, they're the blue stabilisers", Alyssa said and pressed them. Almost immediately the ship became quiet and still "See?"
"Yeah. Well, it's just boring now, isn't it? They're boring-ers. They're blue boring-ers", the Doctor said annoyed.
"How come River can fly the TARDIS?" Amy asked making her way to stand next to him.
"You call that flying the TARDIS?" the Doctor said going over to the jump seat, flopping down on it "Hardly", he scoffed.
"Doctor if it wasn't for her suggestion of the stabilisers, we'd still be trying to chase after the ship", Alyssa pointed out.
"I'm sure you would've figured that out as the thing to do, love", the Doctor said "you are brilliant that way". He got up, walked over to her "and beautiful…" he leaned closer to her ear "…Sexy" he murmured "and all mine".
"Keep talking like that and there'll be an adventure later on", Alyssa said quietly.
"Promise?" the Doctor asked rather thrilled by the prospect.
"Absolutely", Alyssa confirmed with a smile. Amy and River watched as the Doctor kissed the Time Lady long and hard. James on the other hand, averted his gaze.
"I love you", he declared.
"I love you too", Alyssa said.
The Doctor turned to the human-Time Lord "now I want an explanation from you. How and why do you have the same name as the blonde man we met in the Library?"
A flicker of confusion appeared on James face "uh Doctor? It hasn't happened for them yet, remember the timeline thing?" Alyssa reminded him.
"Right", the Doctor said, slowly, realising his mistake "in any case I want to know what you are doing with her" he pointed at River "I agreed to leave you on earth with Donna cos you convinced me that you would keep out of trouble".
"And I did for the most part", James admitted "but since I'm part you…" Amy looked at him, confused "did you really expect me to stay out of trouble for long?"
"He's got a point, dear", Alyssa agreed "you are a trouble magnet".
"You're not helping", the Doctor mumbled.
"Ok. I've mapped the probability vectors, done a fold-back on the temporal isometry, charted the ship to its destination, and parked us right alongside", River piped up as she read over the results on the scanner.
"Parked us?" the Time Lord scoffed "We haven't landed".
"Of course we've landed" River corrected "I just landed her".
"No, you didn't. It didn't make the noise", the Doctor stated, Alyssa hearing a slight whine in his voice underneath his cross tone.
"What noise?" River asked.
"You know, the…" the Doctor imitated the wheezing noise. James snorted as his bad expression. It sounded like he had asthma.
"It's not supposed to make that noise. You leave the brakes on", River said.
"In all fairness, I kinda like that noise", Alyssa admitted "and I know the Doctor loves it…so we leave the breaks on".
"Yeah, I do love it", the Doctor agreed. He ran over to the doors "Come along, Pond, Ali. Let's have a look".
"Environment checks", James called after him.
"Oh yes, sorry. Quite right. Environment checks" much to Alyssa's surprise, the Doctor opened the door and stuck his head out.
"Nice out", he commented pulling his head back in.
"We're somewhere in the Garn Belt", River said looking at the scanner "There's an atmosphere. Early indications suggest that…"
"We're on Alfava Metraxis, the seventh planet of the Dundra System" the Doctor cut in quickly "Oxygen rich atmosphere, all toxins in the soft band, eleven hour day and…" he stuck his head out of the door again "chances of rain later".
River rolled her eyes and turned to Alyssa "He thinks he's so hot when he does that", she said.
"He is hot when he does that", Alyssa said casting a glance at her fiancé. The Doctor grinned, having heard her.
"How come you can fly the TARDIS?" Amy asked as the Doctor walked up the steps, stopping by Alyssa and putting an arm around her.
"Oh, I had lessons from the very best", River replied.
"Well, yeah", the Doctor began smugly.
"I didn't mean you, I meant your brilliant fiancée", River said causing the Doctor's smug look to be wiped off his face.
"She is the better pilot out of the two of you", James commented, winking at the red head causing the Time Lord to shoot a glare at him. The metacrisis didn't seem phased by it though.
River picked up her high heels from where she'd hung them on the scanner and headed for the door "Right then, why did they land here?" she asked.
"They didn't land", the Doctor called after her.
"Sorry?" River asked as she walked.
"You should've checked the Home Box. It crashed", the Doctor said following her. River stepped outside the doors which the Time Lord quickly closed behind her and rushed back to the console.
"Explain!" Amy demanded "Who is that and how did she do that museum thing?"
"It's a long story and I don't know most of it" the Doctor replied, working at the controls "Off we go!"
"You can't leave River behind", James told him, reminding the Time Lord that he was still here.
"Yes we can", the Doctor answered "maybe you should stay with her?" he suggested "just keep an eye out".
"Nah, River will be fine", James said waving off his suggestion "I'd much rather be here with you guys".
"Well, I rather you stayed with River", the Doctor shot back.
"I think he should stay", Alyssa spoke up, surprising her husband-to-be "James isn't doing any harm".
"Yet", the Time Lord countered.
"Hold on, that's a planet out there, isn't it?" their companion asked before Alyssa could argue.
"Yes, it is", the ginger haired man confirmed.
"You did promise a planet", Amy reminded the Time Lords.
"That's true, we did", Alyssa agreed.
"But…River…" the Doctor started.
"We don't even need to go anywhere near her", Alyssa said softly, taking his hand "just 5 minutes, ok?"
The Doctor nodded "ok, 5 minutes", he agreed.
"Yes!" Amy cheered and rushed for the door.
"But that's all, because I'm telling you now, that woman is not dragging me into anything!" the Doctor called after her.
"What about me dear?" Alyssa asked.
"You can drag me anywhere, love", the Doctor replied and James grinned at that. She was the only one who could be allowed to drag him anywhere across time and space.
"Great!" Alyssa said taking hold of his hand and led him out of the TARDIS. The beach they stepped out on to was littered with debris from the crashed spaceship, some of the pieces on fire.
"What caused it to crash?" River asked looking up at the burning wreck of the once sleek spaceship that was partly sticking out of an old stone carved building "Not James and I".
"Nah, the airlock would've sealed seconds after you blew it", the Doctor replied "According to the Home Box, the warp engines had a phase shift. No survivors".
"A phase shift would have to be sabotage" James sighed "I did warn them" he glanced at Alyssa "maybe I just have one of those faces that no one listens to, aye?"
The Time Lady cracked a smile at his words. "Well, at least the building was empty. Aplan temple. Unoccupied for centuries" River said taking out a device from her purse and started typing something into it.
"Aren't you going to introduce us properly?" Amy asked.
"Amy Pond, River Song and James Sven", the Doctor said quickly introducing them to each other.
"Nice to meet you Amy", James said to his fellow ginger.
"I'm nobody's taxi service!" the Doctor said grumpily "that was the first and only time I'm going to catch you when you jump out of a spaceship".
"And you are so wrong" River looked at the ship "There's one survivor. There's a thing in the belly of that ship that can't ever die" she glanced back to see the Doctor looking curious "Now he's listening!" she lifted the device in her hands up to her ear and spoke "You lot in orbit yet? Yeah, I saw it land. I'm at the crash site. Try and home in on my signal" River walked off a little ways away and held up her device but the signal was too weak. She turned around "Doctor, can you sonic me?" she called "I need to boost the signal so we can use it as a beacon". The Doctor took out his sonic from his pocket and does what she asked, though rather reluctantly. River dropped into a small curtsey and continued signalling whoever she was contacting.
"Ooh, Doctor, you soniced her", Amy teased.
"We have a minute" River called motioning them over "Shall we?" the trio walk over to her as she got out her TARDIS coloured diary "Where are we up to? Have we done the Bone Meadows?" River asked after flipping through a few pages.
"What's the book?" Amy asked curious.
"Stay away from it", the Doctor warned her.
"But what is it though?" Amy asked, not one to give up.
"It's her diary, the only way she can keep track as we don't meet in the right order", Alyssa explained.
"Well put Lyssa but it's our diary", River corrected. A moment later 4 columns of swirling 'dust' appeared turning into four soldiers in desert camouflage.
One of the soldier's walked up to River, the Doctor, Alyssa and Amy. "You promised me an army, Doctor Song", the solider, Father Octavian, said to the woman.
"Uh, actually River promised you the equivalent of an army", James corrected "this is the Doctor". The Time Lord in question gave a light-hearted salute "and his wife-to-be, Alyssa Palmer".
"Father Octavian, Sir, ma'am" Octavian reached out and shook the Time Lord's hands "Bishop, second class. Twenty clerics at my command. The troops are already in the drop ship and landing shortly. Doctor Song was helping us with a covert investigation. Has Doctor Song explained what we're dealing with?"
"Doctor, what do you know of the Weeping Angels?" River asked. The Doctor immediately tensed up at those words. The last time, he was sent back in time with Martha leaving Alyssa to deal with them alone. Well…technically she wasn't alone, she had help from Sally Sparrow and friend. Regardless, she was put in a dangerous situation where he couldn't help her…couldn't protect her…and that was never, ever happening again. James even looked worried which wasn't surprising since he had the Doctor's memories too.
Alyssa shifted closer to James, reaching out and grasping his hand tightly. The Doctor noticed this but didn't say anything. He didn't blame her as his metacrisis was the same as his previous-self who encountered the Angels.
Hours later the camp for the troops had been set up which included a small drop module where River was currently dressing into something more appropriate for the situation. Octavian strode across the ground with the Doctor, James and Alyssa following him. The Time Lady kept her gaze forward even though she was very aware of the presence of their companion trailing behind them at a 'discrete' distance. She should've alerted the Doctor to the fact that the ginger wasn't doing as they said but she didn't. She knew Amy was curious and didn't blame her one bit.
"The Angel, as far as we know, is still trapped in the ship", Father Octavian explained "Our mission is to get inside and neutralise it. We can't get through up top, we'd be too close to the drives. According to this…" he showed the trio a map on a similar device that River had "behind the cliff face there's a network of catacombs leading right up to the temple. We can blow through the base of the cliffs, get into the entrance chamber, then make our way up".
"Oh, good", the Doctor said looking at the cliff face, thinking about how not good it was.
"Good, sir?" Octavian asked.
"Catacombs, probably dark ones, dark catacombs. Great", the Time Lord grumbled. Alyssa rubbed his back, sensing his unease.
"Technically, I think it's called a maze of the dead", Octavian corrected him.
"I'd rather call it 'dark catacombs'", James muttered. As ominous as it sounded, it was far better than Maze of the Dead.
"Father Octavian?" a soldier called.
"Excuse me, sir" and with that Octavian turned and walked away.
"I wish you weren't going, Ali", the Doctor said quietly "I lost you once, I can't do it again". Me neither the ginger haired man thought, his heart aching as he remembered how she had died. If it wasn't for the TARDIS bringing her back, they would've been burying the woman that they both loved.
"You wont lose me", Alyssa assured him. She showed him her engagement ring "you're stuck with me forever", she said with a smile. The Doctor returned her smile, taking her hand and dropping a kiss onto it.
"There's no one I'd rather be stuck with", the Doctor said "future Mrs Doctor". James' hand reached into his pocket, fiddling with his wedding ring, mentally cursing the damn timelines. He wanted nothing more than to reveal the truth to them both but he had to wait until the right time.
Amy moved over to sit on a table beside some equipment "So, whatever a Weeping Angel is, it's really bad, yeah?" she asked trying to sound chipper although she couldn't help but feel jealous of the Time Lady. After all the red head had the affections of the man...alien that she'd fallen for.
"Now that's interesting…" the Doctor over at her "You're still here. Which part of wait in the TARDIS till I tell you it's safe was so confusing?"
"Ooo, you are all Mister Grumpy Face today", Amy said with a fake pout.
"A Weeping Angel, Amy, is the deadliest, most powerful, most malevolent life form evolution has ever produced, and right now one of them is trapped inside that wreckage and I'm supposed to climb in…."
"You mean WE are going to climb in", Alyssa interrupted "you're not going on your own".
"You're right the Doctor isn't going alone", James agreed "but you're not going in the ship. It's far too dangerous".
"I can handle myself. I do have my psychic powers", the Time Lady argued "I'm going and that's final". She gave both men a look, folding her arms.
The Doctor sighed "alright you can come as long as you stay by my side".
"I won't leave it for a moment", Alyssa promised and the Time Lord nodded. He turned back to Amy.
"We are going to climb in after it with a screwdriver and a torch", he continued, picking up from the conversation prior to his fiancée's interruption "and assuming that we manage survive the radiation long enough and assuming the whole ship doesn't explode in our faces, do something incredibly clever which I haven't actually thought of yet. That's our day. That's what we're up to. Any questions?"
"Is River Song your wife?" Amy asked. The Doctor pulled a disgusted face at her words while James and Alyssa stared at her, both surprised and shocked.
"Why would you ask that?" the metacrisis questioned "Ali is the one engaged to the Doctor, not River".
"He's right", Alyssa agreed "and you are aware of this. So what on earth makes you believe that River is his wife?"
"Well, she's someone from the Doctor's future, and the way she talks to him, I've never seen anyone do that", Amy answered, glancing at the Time Lord "She's kind of like, you know, 'heel, boy' and Ali here…" she nodded at the red head "hasn't done anything like that. So River's got to be Mrs Doctor from the future".
"Amy you better listen closely because I am only going to say this once. River is not nor will she ever be my wife", the Doctor said firmly "got it?"
"Ok, ok I got it", Amy said putting her hands up. She didn't think he was going to react the way he did when she asked the question.
River stepped out of the drop module, now dressed in the same desert camouflage as the other soldiers "Doctor! James! Lyssa! Father Octavian!" she called before going back inside.
"Why do they call him Father?" Alyssa asked as they all walked over to the drop module.
"He's their Bishop, they're his Clerics", the Doctor replied "It's the fifty first Century. The Church has moved on".
They all entered the drop module to see black and white footage of a Weeping Angel on a screen. Its back was towards them, hands over its eyes. "What do you think?" River asked as she controlled the footage with a remote "It's from the security cameras in the Byzantium vault. I ripped it when I was on board. Sorry about the quality. It's four seconds. I've put it on loop".
The group watched the four seconds played over, a small blip of static in the middle of the loop. "Yeah, it's an Angel" the Doctor confirmed "Hands covering its face".
"You've encountered the Angels before?" Octavian asked.
"Once, on Earth, a long time ago" the Doctor explained.
"But those were scavengers, barely surviving", Alyssa added.
"But it's just a statue", Amy said looking at the Angel confused. How could a statue be dangerous?
"It's a statue when you see it", James told her, eyeing the Weeping Angel warily. He honestly had hoped that he would never come across those creatures ever again. Once at Wester Drumlins was more than enough for him.
"Where did it come from?" the Doctor asked.
"Oh, pulled from the ruins of Razbahan, end of last century. It's been in private hands ever since. Dormant all that time", River answered.
"There's a difference between dormant and patient", the Time Lord corrected her.
"What's that mean, it's a statue when you see it?" Amy asked, not understanding.
"The Weeping Angels can only move if they're unseen. So legend has it", River told her.
Alyssa shook her head "it's not a legend", she said "they can't move when you look at them but the minute you turn your back…" she shivered remembering when she found the Angel in the basement of that house they were investigating. It had given her such a fright at how fast the thing moved.
The Doctor gently squeezed her shoulder to remind her that she wasn't alone this time. This time around they weren't separated by several decades and they never will be ever again. He then took her hand, turned and walked out of the drop module, Amy, River, James and Octavian following.
"The hyperdrive would've split on impact" he said eyeing the ship as he walked "that whole ship's going to be flooded with drive burn radiation, cracked electrons, gravity storms. Deadly to almost any living thing".
"Deadly to an Angel?" Octavian asked hopefully.
"Dinner to an Angel. The longer we leave it there, the stronger it will grow" the Doctor said and turned to River "Who built that temple? Are they still around?" he asked.
"The Aplans" River answered looking down at her device "Indigenous life form. They died out four hundred years ago".
"Two hundred years later, the planet was terraformed. Currently there are six billion human colonists", Octavian added.
"You lot, you're everywhere! You're like rabbits! I'll never get done saving you", the Doctor commented with an amused smile and James barely suppressed a chuckle.
"Sir, if there is a clear and present danger to the local population…" Octavian began.
"Oh, there is" the Doctor said seriously "Bad as it gets. Bishop, lock and load!"
"Verger, how are we doing with those explosives?" Octavian asked walking past the Doctor "Doctor Song, with me".
"Two minutes" River said before walking over to the equipment table "Doctor, James, I need you two", the curly haired woman called to the two males.
The Doctor hesitated. He didn't exactly want to be around the woman any longer than he had to. "Go talk to her", Alyssa said sensing his hesitation "we'll wait in the drop module".
The Time Lord nodded "I won't be long", he promised and wandered over to where River was standing.
"We'll be fine for a few minutes, go", the Time Lady assured James when the ginger didn't join her fiancé and River.
"If you need anything, call", he said "please".
Alyssa gave him a smile "I will", she vowed. James returned the smile before going to the Doctor and River. "Come on, let's wait in the drop module", the Time Lady said, ushering Amy towards it.
When the pair entered the however, they noticed that there was a slight change in the Angel on the screen. It was slightly looking over its shoulder, hands no longer covering its face. "That's strange", Amy commented "I thought they only had one clip of the Angel on a loop".
"That what River said", Alyssa said "but I'll double check". She went over to the open doorway "River!" she called leaning out "Did you have more than one clip of the Angel?"
"No, just the four seconds", River replied.
"What did she say?" Amy asked glancing back at Alyssa as she stepped back.
"She says there's only one clip", the brunette replied. Amy looked back at the screen and was startled to see that the Angel was now facing forwards. "Ali, the Angel's moved again", she said. Alyssa rushed over, her eyes widening when she saw this.
"That can't be", she breathed. Alyssa leant forward and peered closely at the time code and frowned when she saw it loop around from 11:24 to 11:28 "four seconds. It's the same four seconds over and over". As she peered at the time code and as Amy looked at the screen, the door slid shut behind them and locked.
"If it's the same four seconds of footage, how is the Angel moving?" Amy asked as Alyssa straightened up.
"I don't know", she replied "but I think we should try turning the screen off", she suggested "If the screen is off then the clip can't play".
"And if the clip can't play then the Angel won't be able to move", Amy nodded understanding her reasoning. She picked up the remote from the table, pointed it at the screen and pressed the button. It switches off but turns itself back on almost immediately. Amy tried a couple more times with the same result.
Alyssa took the remote and tried to turn it off but the same thing happened to her as well. "Ok, plan b", she said putting the remote down.
"Plan b?" Amy asked.
"Pull the plug", Alyssa said and walked up to the monitor. She bent down, grasped the power cord and gave it a yank but it didn't budge.
"Ali…the Angel's moved again", Amy said starting to feel a little scared. Alyssa looked up and saw the Angel very close to the camera. Startled, she jumped to her feet.
"Door. Now!" Alyssa ordered. They ran to the door and tried to get it open but they couldn't. It was like the door was locked. The pair glanced back at the screen and saw the Angel snarling at them, fangs showing.
"Doctor!" Amy and Alyssa shouted.
The Time Lady looked back at the Weeping Angel. It was partially out of the TV. "Amy I need you to look at the Angel while I try to get the door open", Alyssa said "don't look away and don't blink". Amy turned to the Weeping Angel.
"Don't take too long", the ginger said "doubt I can stare at it for ages".
"I'll be as quick as I can", the Time Lady promised. She stood in front of the door, trying to muster up as much psychic energy as she could.
"Ali…I need to blink", Amy said, her eyes watering from staring at the Weeping Angel for a good couple of minutes.
"Hold on a minute longer", Alyssa said. She released the energy as a psychic blast but all it did was hit the door with a terrific bang, leaving behind a dent.
"That's it?" Amy asked looking at the door, disappointed. Alyssa glanced at her, eyes widening when she saw the Weeping Angel in the middle of the room.
"I told you not to look away!" Alyssa exclaimed pointing over the ginger's shoulder. Amy spun around and gasped. Suddenly there was a banging outside of the drop module.
"Ali! What's happening?" the Doctor shouted.
"The Angel's in the room!" Alyssa shouted "It's coming out of the television!"
"Oh god", James breathed. This was NOT happening again! "Doctor we need to get them out", he said, worried.
"I know. I know", the Doctor muttered, flashing his sonic on the keypad "just keep looking at the Angel, love and for god sake don't blink!" he called through the door.
"What's wrong?" River asked seeing the angry look on the Time Lord's face as he glared at the keypad.
"Deadlocked", the Doctor replied.
"There is no deadlock", River told him as she tried to override the controls herself.
"Don't blink, Ali! Amy! Don't even blink!" the Doctor shouted moving over to a small box on the side of the unit.
"What are you doing?" River questioned as he frantically tried to sonic the box.
"Cutting the power. It's using the screen, I'm turning the screen off" the Doctor explained "No good, it's deadlocked the whole system".
"There's no deadlock", River repeated.
"There is now!" the Doctor snapped, his hearts hammering in his chest. His fiancé was trapped with a Weeping Angel. He had to get in there! He was NOT losing the love of his lives!
"Ali, can you turn the screen off?" James asked, his own heart pounding away in fear for the Time Lady he was in love with.
"We tried", Amy called as she and Alyssa stared at the Angel, backs pressed against the door, absolutely terrified.
"Try again. But don't take your eyes off the Angel", the Doctor told them.
Amy and Alyssa slowly edged forward keeping their eyes fixed on the Angel. "Amy get the remote, I'll watch the Angel", Alyssa told her. Amy nodded, turning to the table and grabbed the remote. She made sure to blink a couple of times before going back to where Alyssa stood.
"I've got it. You can blink Ali", Amy said staring at the Angel. The brunette blinked gratefully as her eyes had started to water from staring at the Angel for too long. "It just keeps switching back on!" Amy called as she tried to use the remote to switch the Angel off again.
"Yeah, it's the Angel", the Doctor called back.
"But it's just a recording!" Alyssa shouted not understanding how the recording of a Weeping Angel could become Weeping Angel. She even tried to destroy it just like she did with the first Angel she met but the psychic energy just seemed to dissipate when it hit the projection of the statue.
"No, anything that takes the image of an Angel is an Angel" the Doctor corrected her. "What are you doing?" he asked River who was now trying to cut through the metal door with a mini blowtorch.
"I'm trying to cut through", River replied "It's not even warm".
"There is no way in. It's not physically possible", the Doctor said, his hearts still hammering away in his chest. He couldn't give up! There had to be some way to get into the drop module!
"Doctor, what's it going to do to us?" Amy asked fearfully as she and Alyssa continued to stare at the Angel.
"Just keep looking at it. Don't stop looking", the Doctor urged them.
"If that thing touches us, it'll just displace us in time, right?", Alyssa stated earning her a frightened look from Amy "it isn't going to do anything…worse is it?"
"That's all it does", James assured her, though he wasn't entirely sure if that were true as he had no way of knowing if the Weeping Angels could do anything else besides that. The Doctor's eyes widened when it suddenly hit him. The book!
He ran over to where he dropped it. The Doctor picked it up and ran back to the drop module flicking though the book as he went. "Ali, Amy, not the eyes. Look at the Angel but don't look at the eyes", the Doctor told them.
"Why?" Amy asked as she and Alyssa stared at the Angel, right where the Doctor told them not to, the eyes.
"What is it?" River asked knowing the Doctor told them not to look in the eyes of the Weeping Angel for a reason.
"'The eyes are not the windows of the soul. They are the doors. Beware what may enter there'" the Doctor said reading that section in the book aloud.
"Oh no", the metacrisis breathed, understanding what that meant. Stare at the eyes of the Angel and it can enter your mind.
"Doctor, what did you say?" Alyssa asked trying to look elsewhere on the Angel but found her gaze being drawn back to its eyes.
"Don't look at the eyes!" the Doctor shouted.
"What did you say about images?" Amy asked having not quiet heard what the Doctor had said.
"Whatever holds the image of an Angel, is an Angel", River called.
"Ok…hold this" keeping her gaze fixed on the Angel, Amy raised the remote "One, two, three, four…." She pressed pause on the remote just as the tape reached the blip. The projection froze before flickering off, the screen powering down as well. The door burst open as the Doctor ran in, immediately going over to Alyssa, checking her over before hugging her tightly. He felt himself calm slightly as he held her, his hearts going back to their normal rhythm.
"I'm not letting you out of my sight ever again", he told her.
River looked Amy over, making sure she was ok before giving the ginger a quick hug. "I froze it. There was a sort of blip on the tape and I froze it on the blip", Amy explained when they stepped away "It wasn't the image of an Angel any more. That was good, yeah? It was, wasn't it? That was pretty good" she smiled both in relief and proud of herself.
"It was more than good Ames. It was brilliant", Alyssa said looking over at her as the Doctor continued to hug her.
"Very clever", River said smiling at the young woman .
James went over the to monitor and yanked out the plug "the Angel is no longer dormant", he stated "not good". Suddenly there was an explosion outside making them all jump. The Doctor ran to the door and looked out.
"It's gone positive!" a cleric said to Octavian.
"Doctor!" Octavian shouted "we're through!"
"Okay, now it starts", the Doctor said. He took Alyssa's hand and led her out of the drop module. "You ok, love?" he asked when she tugged her hand out of his and rubbed her left eye.
"Yeah, just something in my eye", Alyssa replied "think it's an eye lash". Unknown to either of them, Amy was rubbing her eye too.
One by one they all climbed down a rope ladder into the Maze of the Dead. When Alyssa reached the bottom rung, the Doctor was quick to help her down before a cleric could. "Possessive much?" she asked, getting that feeling from him.
"Of course I am, love", the Doctor said "is that still not a problem?"
The Time Lady gave him a kiss "Nope", Alyssa answered. The Doctor smiled and turned to Octavian.
"Did we bring a gravity globe?" he asked glancing at the man.
"Yes we did", he replied and turned to his clerics "Grav globe" he ordered. One of the clerics took a white sphere out of a pack and handed it over to Octavian who passed it to the Doctor.
"Where are we? What is this?" Amy questioned flashing her own torch around.
"It's an Aplan Mortarium, sometimes called a 'Maze of the Dead'", River replied looking around with her own torch.
"What's that?" Amy asked. The Doctor held out the Grav globe, giving Alyssa a look. She nodded and the Time Lord tossed the white orb up into the air. The red haired Time Lady gave the orb a push with her powers to allow it to hang high in the air, bathing the cave in a white light. The light allowed the group to see the vast number of statues on the various levels.
"This is going to make things much harder", James muttered, eyeing the statues "the Angel could be anywhere".
"A needle in a haystack", River said.
"A needle that looks like hay. A hay-like needle of death. A hay-alike needle of death in a haystack of, er, statues…" the Doctor managed to say before Alyssa cut him off with a light smack to the arm.
"You're making our companion very uneasy", she said eyeing Amy, getting a strong sense of unease from the ginger.
The Doctor glanced at Amy and could tell by the looks on her face, that his fiancée was right. "Sorry", he said apologetically. The situation they were currently in was scary enough, the last thing he wanted to do was to make it worse. He needed to remember to think before he spoke, which if he had to be honest was easier said than done because it seemed like this version of him might be a bit of rambler, just like his previous self.
"Right" Octavian nodded, taking charge, turning to his clerics "Check every single statue in this chamber. You know what you're looking for. Complete visual inspection" he turned back to the Doctor "One question: How do we fight it?" he asked.
"We find it, and hope", the Doctor replied, picking up a couple of torches and giving one to Alyssa. He then took her other hand and walked off, Amy following them.
The ginger paused when she once more felt something in her eye. She rubbed the corner of her eye with her finger and frowned when she saw grit on it. Amy then rubbed hand over her eye, sand and grit falling between her fingers. She pulled her hand away and stared at it but there was nothing there. Must be imagining things she thought.
"You ok?" James queried, coming to stand next to her, having noticed the woman stare at her hand. He'd also had seen Alyssa do the same thing. He really hoped that it wasn't a sign that they'd stared into the eyes of the Angel.
"Yeah, I'm fine", Amy replied "So, what's a Maze of the Dead?" she asked.
"Oh, it's not as bad as it sounds" River answered, stepping up next to the pair "It's just a labyrinth with dead people buried in the walls" when Amy gave her a look, she added "Okay that was fairly bad. Right, give me your arm" River took out a syringe from her pocket. Slightly puzzled as to why she needed an injection, Amy held out her arm. River pushed up the sleeve of her red hoody "This won't hurt a bit", she said before injecting Amy with the syringe.
"Ow!" Amy cried as it did hurt.
"There, you see. I lied", River said putting the syringe back into one of her pockets "what I've just injected you with is a viro-stabiliser. Stabilises your metabolism against radiation, drive burn, anything. You're going to need it when we get up to that ship".
Amy looked at the Doctor who was currently examining a statue with his torch, Alyssa standing next to him. "So what's he like?" she asked "In the future, I mean. Because you know him in the future, don't you?" She was rather curious to know more about the Doctor and who better to tell her than River Song, the woman supposedly from the Doctor's future.
"Well, the Doctor's…the Doctor", River said vaguely looking at the pair ahead of them.
"Oh, well, that's very helpful" Amy said sarcastically. She'd been hoping for something a little less vague from the woman "Mind if I write that down?"
"Yes, we are", River suddenly called out catching the pair's attention.
"Sorry, what?" Alyssa asked turning to her, having not heard a word they'd said because unlike the Doctor, she hadn't been listening in.
"Talking about you", River said.
"Me?" Alyssa asked confused, it was like she'd been brought into the middle of a conversation she hadn't even been aware of.
"Not you Lyssa, the Doctor", River clarified.
"I wasn't listening, I'm busy", the Doctor said not looking up from the device.
"The other way up", River told him. They all watched the Doctor turn the device the right way up. James snorted, shaking his head. It seemed like some things never change with the Time Lord.
"You're so his wife", Amy said quietly to River. River on the other hand just gave Amy an amused smile, mainly to disguise the fact that she wanted to grimace at the thought of being the Doctor's wife.
"Oh Amy, it would be impossible to be his wife. He already has a fiancée ", River said.
"He does?" Amy asked 'innocently'.
River just gave her a look, knowing that the ginger was fully aware that Alyssa was the Doctor's fiancée and yet she still had a thing for the Time Lord. Well, she was going to have to nip that in the bud. "Amy its pretty much impossible not to love him. However, for your own sake, you're going to have to stop" she looked over at the Time Lords "It's hard to explain it but those two…they were meant to be. There's no getting between them so I wouldn't even try".
"Besides it wouldn't end well if you did", James added. Rose had attempted to do the same thing and she gave the Daleks a way to invade the Earth, subsequently being the cause of Alyssa's death. He was going to ensure that it never happened again.
Amy looked over at the couple, jealous over their relationship but she shouldn't be. She really shouldn't be considering she was already engaged to Rory and their relationship was going…pretty well. But still she couldn't help feel that way. Maybe because of all those years of fantasising of being with the Doctor only to get a big slap in the face from reality when she learned that he was happily in a relationship with someone else. Not only that but they were going to have a baby together. No way she could compete with that.
Suddenly gunfire sounded, causing all five of them to run back into the main chamber of the Maze of the Dead. One of the clerics had fired at a statue "Sorry, sorry. I thought…I thought it looked at me", the young man said apologetically, looking clearly shaken up.
"We know what the Angel looks like. Is that the Angel?" Octavian asked the cleric.
"No, sir", the cleric replied.
"No, sir, it is not! According to the Doctor, we are facing an enemy of unknowable power and infinite evil, so it would be good, it would be very good, if we could all remain calm in the presence of décor", Octavian said.
Alyssa frowned at how Octavian reprimanded the young man. She could feel how scared the young cleric was. "What's your name?" she asked gently.
"Bob, ma'am", he answered.
"Ah, that's a great name" the Doctor smiled "I love Bob".
"It's a Sacred Name" Octavian added "We all have Sacred Names. They're given to us in the service of the Church".
The Doctor walked over to the pair "Sacred Bob. More like Scared Bob now, eh?" he asked with a smile.
"Yes, sir", Bob admitted looking down.
"Ah, good", the Doctor said "Scared keeps you fast. Anyone in this room who isn't scared is a moron. Carry on". The Doctor turned back to Alyssa, Amy, James and River.
"We'll be moving into the maze in two minutes" Octavian called to the other clerics before turning to Bob "You stay with Christian and Angelo. Guard the approach".
"Isn't there a chance this lot's just going to collapse?" Amy asked looking around at the caverns above them as they walked "There's a whole ship up there".
"The Aplans are very good builders Amy. No chance of collapse", River assured her.
"I had dinner with their Chief Architect once", the Doctor spoke up "Two heads are better than one".
"What, you mean you helped him?" the ginger questioned.
"No, the Chief Architect had two heads", James corrected her.
"That book, the very end, what did it say?" the Doctor asked River.
River pulled the book out of her pack and opened it, the Time Lords looking over her shoulder at the passage "'What if we had ideas that could think for themselves?'" she read aloud "'What if one day our dreams no longer needed us?'" If that did happen, that would be one terrifying day Amy thought, shifting uneasily on the spot. "'When these things occur and are held to be true, the time will be upon us" River continued "The time of Angels'".
"Are we there yet?" Amy asked when they reached the fourth level "It's a hell of a climb". Alyssa had to agree with her, she was starting to feel the ache in her legs too and she used to ice skate. She wasn't looking forward to this being a constant thing in the later stages of her pregnancy. The Time Lady didn't say a word of complaint because something was playing havoc on her abilities. She didn't what it was but it felt like it was all around her, suffocating her. James cast a glance at her having sensed her discomfort. It was times like this that he was glad he had gained slight empathic abilities through his creation.
"The Maze is on six levels, representing the ascent of the soul", River explained "Only two levels to go".
"Lovely species, the Aplans" the Doctor remarked "We should visit them some time".
"I thought they were all dead?" Amy asked with a frown.
"So is Virginia Woolf", the Doctor pointed out "I'm on her bowling team. Very relaxed, sort of cheerful. Well, that's having two heads, of course. You're never short of a snog with an extra head".
Alyssa suddenly stopped dead, her face suddenly draining of colour. She now knew why she felt the way she was because they were surrounded by Weeping Angels! "Ali, what's wrong? Is it the baby?" James asked hastily, before the Doctor could get a word in.
Alyssa shook her head "Look at the statues", she said shakily. Everyone looked at the statues, the Doctor's eyes widening when he saw what Alyssa must've noticed. Even James stared at them wide eyed. He really wished that his abilities were more substantial like the Time Lady's. Maybe then he could've sensed the danger and before they went too far.
"Oh…" the Doctor breathed.
"How could we have not noticed that?" River asked wondering how they'd missed something as obvious as the lack of a second head on the statues.
"Must be a perception filter", the meta-crisis stated, shifting closer to Alyssa. The Doctor wasn't going to complain as he knew his other-self would do anything to keep the Time Lady safe.
"What's wrong, sir?" Octavian asked wondering why the Time Lord along with River, James and Alyssa were looking so worried.
"Nobody move" the Doctor ordered trying to stay calm despite the fact that his hearts where starting to beat faster at the fact that all of them, including his fiancée and unborn child was in terrible danger "Nobody move. Everyone stay exactly where they are" the Doctor looked at Octavian "Bishop, I am truly sorry" he said apologetically "I've made a mistake and we are all in terrible danger".
"What danger?" Octavian asked still not getting why they were so concerned.
"The Aplans have two heads" The Doctor stated "So why don't the statues". With those words, everyone who hadn't noticed before suddenly noticed the lack of a second head on all of the statues. "Everyone, over there" the Time Lord nodded at the spot where there wasn't any statues "Just move. Don't ask questions, don't speak". Everyone moved over to the spot he indicated while the Doctor kept his eyes trained on the statues "Okay, I want you all to switch off your torches", he said after he'd moved backed up to join the group, not once taking his eyes off the statues.
"Sir?" Octavian questioned. It didn't seem like the best idea to him.
"Just do it", the Doctor said. One by one they turned off their torches, though Alyssa was a little hesitant to do so. "Okay. I'm going to turn off this one too, just for a moment", the Time Lord told them all.
"Are you sure about this?" Alyssa asked him.
"No", the Doctor answered honestly. He didn't want to turn his light off but he had to make sure. He switched his torch off for a split second and then back on again. All the statues in front of them had turned to face them.
"Oh, my God. They've moved", Amy gasped. The Doctor ran down the passageway, his eyes darting from statue to statue. He stopped when he saw one of the statues on the floor arm outstretched. "They're Angels! All of them!" he declared.
"But they can't be", River shook her head, she, Amy, Alyssa and James having followed him.
The five of them moved along the passage way and looked down at the statues they'd passed on the way up. They were no longer standing upright instead they were in crouched positions, crawling towards the travellers. "Every statue in this Maze, every single one, is a Weeping Angel" the Doctor said looking at them all "They're coming after us".
"Doctor, I'm sorry", Alyssa said quickly "if I'd just realised what I was sensing were that they were ALL Weeping Angels…"
"Its ok Ali", the Doctor cut in "It's not your fault". He wasn't expecting her to sense that all the statues were Weeping Angels. He wasn't even expecting her to be able to pinpoint the Angel from the ship, given that it took a lot for her to sense the Vashta Nerada in the Library.
The group rushed back to Octavian and the other clerics. "But there was only one Angel on the ship. Just the one, I swear", River insisted.
"Could they have been here already?" Amy asked looking at the statues, flashing her torch between each one.
"The Aplans. What happened? How did they die out?" the Doctor questioned turning to River.
"Nobody knows", River answered.
"I think we know", James said eyeing the statues, uneasily.
"They don't look like Angels", Octavian remarked staring at them, noting the distinct lack of wings on the statues.
"And they're not fast" Amy added "You said they were fast. They should have had us by now".
"Look at them. They're dying, losing their form" the Doctor said with his torch trained on one of the statues "They must have been down here for centuries, starving".
"Hence why they look more like garden statues rather than killer Angel ones", Alyssa added.
"And their image is their power", the Doctor said "Power" his eyes widened in realization "Power!"
"Doctor?" Amy asked.
"Don't you see? All that radiation spilling out the drive burn. The crash of the Byzantium wasn't an accident, it was a rescue mission for the Angels" the Doctor explained. He turned to look at the statues "We're in the middle of an army, and it's waking up", he said.
"Doctor, we've got to get out of here", James insisted, his eyes going to the Time Lady. The Doctor nodded in agreement, his mind going through ways to get them out of their current situation.
"Bob, Angelo, Christian, come in, please" Octavian called into his radio "Any of you, come in".
"It's Bob, sir" Bob answered "Sorry, sir".
"Bob, are Angelo and Christian with you?" Octavian asked "All the statues are active" he warned "I repeat, all the statues are active!"
"I know, sir" Bob said "Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The statues killed them, sir".
Upon hearing that, the Doctor snatched Octavian's radio from his hands "Bob, Sacred Bob, it's me, the Doctor", he said speaking into it.
"I'm talking to…" Octavian began.
"Where are you now?" the Doctor asked, ignoring Octavian.
"I'm talking to my…" the bishop tried again.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, shut up", the Doctor snapped at him.
"I'm on my way up to you, sir" Bob informed the Time Lord through the radio "I'm homing in on your signal".
"Ah, well done, Bob" the Doctor smiled "Scared keeps you fast. Told you, didn't I? Your friends, Bob. What did the Angel do to them?"
"Snapped their necks, sir", Bob answered making the Doctor frown.
"I don't understand. The Angels just displace you in time", Alyssa murmured, quietly "why would they kill like that?"
"I have no idea", James admitted but it made him even more worried than he already was. He gently touched her back "but I promise you this, the Weeping Angels aren't going to lay a hand on you or your baby. Not while myself and the Doctor are here". The Time Lady gave him a grateful smile. She was thankful that the ginger haired man was present even if her fiancé wasn't so keen on him.
Octavian took the radio from the Doctor "Bob, did you check their data packs for vital signs?" he asked the cleric "We may be able to initiate a rescue plan". He didn't want to believe that they had been killed by the Angel, they had to be still alive.
The Doctor snatched the radio back again "Oh, don't be an idiot!" he snapped "The Angels don't leave you alive!" the Doctor brought the radio to his mouth and spoke "Bob, keep running. But tell me, how did you escape?"
"I didn't escape, sir" Bob informed him "The Angel killed me, too". Those words got another frown from the Doctor.
"What do you mean, the Angel killed you?" he asked.
"Snapped my neck, sir" Bob said "Wasn't as painless as I expected, but it was pretty quick, so that was something".
Alyssa frowned If he was dead, how can he be talking to the Doctor? the Time Lady thought.
"If you're dead, how can I be talking to you?" the Doctor asked reiterating the words from Alyssa's thought.
"You're not talking to me, sir. The Angel has no voice. It stripped my cerebral cortex from my body and re-animated a version of my consciousness to communicate with you" Bob explained "Sorry about the confusion", he added sounding apologetic.
"So when you say you're on your way up to us…" the Doctor began.
"It's the Angel that's coming, sir, yes", Bob confirmed.
"No way out", the Doctor muttered.
"Then we get out through the wreckage", Octavian stated "Go!"
The clerics ran past Octavian and the Doctor to head towards the wreckage of the Byzantium. River followed after them with Amy, Alyssa and James. The group stopped running when they reached an open chamber. "Well. There it is, the Byzantium", Octavian said looking up at the underside of the ship, several feet above them.
Alyssa looked up at it "that's quite a way up", she remarked before she rubbed her temple from a sudden dull pain in her head.
"You ok Lyssa?" River asked.
"Yeah, slight head ache", Alyssa replied "nothing to worry about", she added quickly. She had worse headaches from using her powers. James frowned at that. He had a feeling it wasn't an ordinary headache.
"How do we get up there?" River asked.
Octavian turned to his remaining clerics "Check all these exits. I want them all secure", he ordered and the men moved off to do so.
"Where's the Doctor and Amy?" Alyssa asked worriedly, not seeing either of them.
"I'll go look for them", River said "wait here". Alyssa nodded and watched the curly haired woman walk away before wincing again. She rubbed her head but when she moved her hand away, it grey and stone like. Alyssa closed her eyes and when she opened them again, her hand was back to its normal colour. She turned it over and run her fingers over her palm.
Just imagined it she thought. Though why she'd imagine her hand as stone, she had no idea. Her gaze flickered up to the Grav globe as it started to flicker. "That's not good", she muttered. Given her first run in with the Weeping Angel, she knew that they had the power to mess with the lights.
"Ali, that's not an ordinary headache", James told her, concerned. He noticed the wince and the way stared at her hand and grew more worried for her.
"Of course it is", the Time Lady waved him off "don't look at me like that I'm fine", she added seeing the expression on his face.
One of the cleric's hurried back to the group. "The statues are advancing along all corridors" he informed them "And, sir, my torch keeps flickering".
"They all do", Octavian said seriously "Clerics, we're down to four men. Expect incoming". A moment later the Doctor, Amy and River joined them.
"You guys ok?" Alyssa asked the Doctor and Amy.
"Yeah we're fine", Amy replied not wanting to tell the red head about how she thought her hand was stone as she didn't want to worry her. She had no idea that the Time Lady had already had that happen to her.
"For the moment at least", the Doctor added "the Angels are coming and they're draining the power for themselves".
"Which means we won't be able to see them", Octavian concluded.
"So we can't stay here", the Doctor said flashing his torch around for any possible way out.
"Two more incoming", Octavian said noticing two Angels appear at the entrance to one of the tunnels.
"Any suggestions?" River asked the Doctor.
"The statues are advancing on all sides" Octavian said looking up at the Byzantium "We don't have the climbing equipment to reach the Byzantium".
"There's no way up, no way back, no way out" River concluded having had a quick assessment of their situation and their surroundings. She looked at the Doctor "No pressure, but this is usually when you have a really good idea".
"There's always a way out", James insisted "always". All the lights flickered off for a split second and when they came back on, more Angels had appeared.
"Doctor? Can I speak to the Doctor, please?" Angel Bob's voice called through the radio.
"Hello, Angels. What's your problem?" the Doctor said holding the radio near his mouth.
"Your power will not last much longer, and the Angels will be with you shortly. Sorry, sir", Angel Bob said apologetically.
"Why are you telling me this?" the Doctor asked.
"There's something the Angels are very keen you should know before the end", Angel Bob said.
"Which is?" the Doctor asked.
"I died in fear", Angel Bob said.
"I'm sorry?"
"You told me my fear would keep me alive, but I died afraid, in pain and alone. You made me trust you, and when it mattered, you let me down", Angel Bob said.
"What are they doing?" Amy asked.
"They're trying to make him angry", River replied equally quietly.
"Which is not a good idea, trust me", Alyssa added "there is a reason he is sometimes called the Oncoming Storm". River hummed in agreement.
"I'm sorry, sir" Angel Bob said still apologetic "The Angels were very keen for you to know that".
"Well then, the Angels have made their third mistake because I'm not going to let that pass" the Doctor said, his voice even trying to hide how angry he actually was from everyone else "I'm sorry you're dead, Bob, but I swear to whatever is left of you, they will be sorrier".
"But you're trapped, sir, and about to die".
"Yeah, I'm trapped" the Doctor said looking around, making sure that his plan was going to work. It had to work. There was no way he was going to let his fiancée and the rest of them be killed by Weeping Angels. "And you know what? Speaking of traps, this trap has got two great big mistakes in it. Two great big, whopping mistakes!"
"What mistakes, sir?" Angel Bob asked. Ignoring him, the Doctor turned to Amy.
"Trust me?" he asked her.
"Yeah", she replied.
He turned to River "Trust me?"
"Always", River said with a smile, seeing that he had a plan.
The Doctor turned to Alyssa "I trust you Doctor", she said confidently also with a smile on her face. He returned her smile before turning his attention to Octavian and the other clerics.
"You lot, trust me?" the Time Lord asked.
"We have faith, sir", Octavian answered.
"Octavian, give me your gun" the man hands it over "I'm about to do something incredibly stupid and dangerous. When I do…" the Doctor jumped on the spot "jump!"
"Jump where?" Octavian asked.
"Just jump, high as you can" the Doctor replied "Come on, leap of faith, Bishop. On my signal"
"What signal?"
"You won't miss it", the Doctor said aiming the gun at the Byzantium.
"Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned two mistakes we made", Angel Bob spoke up.
"Oh, big mistakes. Huge" the Doctor said into the radio "Firstly, you put my fiancée and unborn child in danger and I WON'T have that, not now, not ever. Secondly, if you're smart, if you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there is one thing you never, ever put in a trap".
"And what would that be, sir?" Angel Bob asked.
"Me!"
The Doctor fires at the Grav globe and it explodes.
To be continued….