The Daleks were advancing on them, their loud cries of 'Exterminate!" Ringing through the room.
Cass, knowing the blonde was about to speak up, quickly leaning closer and whispered, "Get them talking, but don't move. Stay right where you are."
Rose nodded imperceptibly, before yelling, "Daleks!"
They fell silent, taken aback.
"You're called 'Daleks'." The blonde continued, taking off her lab coat, but staying in her place, like Cass had asked her to, "I know your name. Think about it: how can I know that? A Human... who knows about the Daleks. And the Time War. If you wanna know how, then keep us alive. That's all I'm asking. Me and my friends."
"Yeah," Mickey nodded, recognising the creatures from stories his pilot had told him of them, "Daleks. Time War. Me too."
"And me," Rajesh added quickly.
Cass was the only one who stayed quiet, keeping her attention on the pepper-pots, never taking her eyes off of them.
It would be just her luck too, wouldn't it? Not only would she have to deal with Daleks, but the Cult of Skaro in particular.
Dalek Sec, the one who seemed to be in charge, turned its eye-piece to Rose, "You will be necessary." Turning back to another Dalek, Jast, Cass knew, he asked, "Report: what is the status of the Genesis Ark?"
"Status: hibernation."
"Commence awakening."
Another Dalek, who Cass recognised as Thay, added, "The Genesis Ark must be protected above all else."
The three turned to the Ark, which had also emerged from the sphere. Dalek Thay headed towards it, before clamping its suction arm around it.
Cass meanwhile, had had to hold back a gasp…she hadn't seen this in…centuries.
Mickey looked at the blonde, still holding his gun aimed at the Daleks, and whispered, "The Daleks, you said they were all dead."
"Never mind that, what the hell's a Genesis Ark?"
"A prison ship," Cass informed them quietly, "Meant to hold thousands and millions of Daleks inside of it."
Sec turned back to them, cutting the companions' questions off with one of his own, "Which of you is least important?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rose asked.
"Which of you is least important?"
"No, we don't work like that. None of us."
"Designate the least important!"
Rajesh stepped forward, ignoring the redhead's hissed whispers of 'don't you idiot!', and said, "This is my responsibility." He stood before the Daleks, "I er, I represent the Torchwood Institute. Anything you need, you... come through me. Leave these three alone."
"You will kneel." Sec intoned.
"What for?"
"Kneel."
And he did, the surrounding Daleks directing their eye stalks onto him.
"The Daleks need information about current Earth history." Sec informed him.
"Yeah well I can give you a certain amount of intelligence but nothing that will compromise Home Land security…"
"Speech is not necessary. We will extract brainwaves."
The three Daleks advanced upon Rajesh and positioned their suction arms around his head.
Cass looked at the two companions, and quickly wrapped her hands around the back of their heads, pulling them into her shoulders, shielding their eyes, "You don't want to see that. Trust me." She whispered.
She kept her eyes on Rajesh though, nodding at the man, allowing him to die knowing someone had witnessed it, that someone knew he was a hero.
As his screams died out, Rose and Mickey flinching violently against the redhead, the Daleks allowed his blackened corpse to drop to the floor, Sec saying, "His mind spoke of a second species invading Earth infected by the superstition of ghosts."
"You didn't need to kill him!" Rose yelled out angrily, wiping tears off her face.
Beside her, Cass was back to staring at the pepper pots, face empty as she simply said, "They kill whatever doesn't serve them alive."
"Correct." Caan, the only Dalek who had yet to speak, replied.
"Dalek Thay," Sec commanded, "investigate outside."
"I obey."
As they grew distracted amongst themselves, Rose looked back at her older sister, gasping when she noticed something different.
The locket, the one Cass had taken to wearing around her neck, the one that held her Time Lady essence…it was gone.
"Your necklace…" she whispered softly, only to quiet when she noticed how…old, Cass' eyes seemed, how weary and drawn.
How much they reminded her of the Doctor's eyes.
"You opened it," she breathed instead.
Cass nodded slowly, turning to shoot the girl a sad smile, "It was the only way. I needed to keep you two safe, and we both know Rosie…I wouldn't have survived this otherwise."
Mickey looked at them curiously, before his eyes widened in understanding, "You're…a Time Lord too?"
"Time Lady," Rose corrected.
"And we don't have time for this right now," Cass added quickly, "I promise, I'll explain everything. later. Right now, you both need to keep pretending I'm human. If they try to access the knowledge in my mind…it will destroy the universe."
—
"Establish visual contact. Lower communications barrier." Dalek Sec commanded, as a projection appeared in the area previously occupied by the sphere, showing Dalek Thay's point of view as he met with two Cybermen.
"Identify yourselves." Thay exclaimed.
"You will identify first." The Cybermen responded.
"State your identity."
"You will identify first."
"Identify!"
"...illogical, you will modify."
"Daleks do not take orders."
"You have identified as Daleks."
"Outline resembles the inferior species known as 'Cybermen'."
From her spot, leaning against the wall, Cass couldn't help but roll her eyes, joking lightly to her sister, "Men, all the same, no matter the species. Gotta get into a dick measuring contest to figure out who's the bigger alpha."
Rose chuckled, nodding lightly, and Cass smiled, before a wave of fear and panic engulfed her, her tether's frantic voice echoing in her brain, Cassie?! They're Daleks! Cassie, please, love…where are you?
I'm okay, she whispered back, making a conscious effort to lower her voice, knowing he would already notice how much clearer it sounded, I'm okay, honey. As are Rose and Mickey. The Daleks are just kind of ignoring us for now. Are you okay?
A second passed, and then relief so potent flooded her, she nearly fell off her feet at the strength of it. It was astounding really, how much clearer she could feel him. It was as though every emotion he felt, no matter how minute, was transferred to her.
His joy at hearing her voice, the relief that she was okay, the anger and lingering worry that she'd left his side.
And the fear, the blood-curdling fear he felt as the presence of the Daleks, the notion that they could harm her, and he wouldn't be there to help.
I'm okay love. Hang tight, I'll be coming for you. He said.
She smiled lightly, I know. You always come back to me, and I, to you.
"We must protect the Genesis Ark." Dalek Jast said, as through the projection, the Cyberman stated, "Our species are similar, though your design is inelegant."
"Daleks have no concept of elegance." Thay replied.
"This is obvious. But consider, our technologies are compatible. Cybermen plus Daleks, together, we could upgrade the Universe."
"You propose an alliance?"
"This is correct."
"Request denied."
The Cybermen immediately thrust their fists out, ready to shoot, "Hostile elements will be deleted."
They shoot at the Daleks, but their rays simply bounce off of its outer-casing.
"Exterminate!" Thay aimed at both Cybermen, one after the other, firing two shots, before watching as they dropped to the floor. Dead.
The Cybermen's voice suddenly flooded the room, warning ominously, "Daleks, be warned: you have declared war upon the Cybermen."
"This is not war." Sec replied, and Cass swore that if they could, he would be laughing in mockery, "This is pest control."
"We have five million Cybermen. How many are you?"
"Four."
"You would destroy the Cybermen with four Daleks?!"
"We would destroy the Cybermen with one Dalek. You are superior in only one respect."
"What is that?"
"You are better at dying. Raise communications barrier!"
The screen went to static for an instant, before Dalek Jast yelled, "Wait! Rewind image by nine rells."
The Doctor's image appeared on the projection, Rose grinning slightly at the sight, before frowning when she noticed Cass' eyes narrow in worry.
"Identify grid seven gamma frame."
The image zoomed forwards, until he filled the screen.
"This male registers as enemy." Jast concluded.
Sec rolled closer to the group of three, and Cass jumped into action, immediately tugging the two humans slightly behind her, watching as he turned his eye to Rose, "The female's heartbeat has increased."
"Yeah, tell me about it." Mickey chuckled under his breath, shaking his head slightly.
"Identify him!"
"Alright then," the blonde smirked smugly, "if you really wanna know... that's the Doctor."
The Daleks rolled back harshly, and Rose continued, "Five million Cybermen, easy. One Doctor? Now you're scared."
They turned away, and she looked back at Cass, her false bravado falling, making place for the fear she felt. As the Time Lady held her hand tightly, Mickey whispered, "How come they don't know what you are? Don't you have two hearts?"
"I'm slowing their beating down enough to where it only sounds like one," the redhead whispered back, grinning smugly at their wide eyes, "What? Just 'cause the Doc doesn't know any nifty tricks, doesn't mean I don't."
—
"Cyber threat irrelevant." Dalek Thay announced as he entered the sphere room again, "Concentrate on the Genesis Ark."
As Sec pressed its suction arm to the Ark, Mickey turned to both of his girls, asking, "Why are we being kept alive?"
"They might need me." Rose whispered back.
The two were drawn back behind the Time Lady, who corrected softly, "They need us. Any of us, really."
—
Whilst the Daleks crowded around the Genesis Ark, Mickey showed Cass and Rose his own yellow button.
"I could transport out of here, but it only carries one and I'm not leaving either of you," he murmured softly.
Cass smiled gently, "Glad to see you were able to understand my scribbles. Sorry about the handwriting, I was in a bit of a rush, if you remember."
"Didn't matter." He smirked, "You saved us."
"No, I just gave you the started point. You saved yourselves." She nodded proudly, as Rose whispered, staring at her former boyfriend, "You'd follow me anywhere, Cass too. What did we do to you all those years ago?"
"Guess I'm just stupid," he shrugged, only to flinch in pain when a harsh blow landed don his shoulder, courtesy of the frowning redhead.
"I told you, stop insulting yourself. It insults me too." She muttered.
"You're the bravest man I've ever met." Rose finished happily, squeezing his hand.
"What about the Doctor?" He grinned knowingly.
The blonde chuckled, rolling her eyes, "Oh, all right. Bravest Human."
"I don't know…" Cass shook her head, looking at her companion, beaming with pride at the man he's become, the man she always knew he would become, "I think you might be the bravest creature I've ever met, human, alien or otherwise. And I couldn't be prouder to call you my best friend."
Mickey smiled happily, pulling both girls into his arms, hugging them tightly. He'd missed them, during their time apart. He'd missed them both so much, and in different ways.
Rose…she was his family. He'd realised, as he'd worked to defend the earth in the other universe, that the love he had for her, it was more familial than anything. She was his sister, his confidante.
But not the love of his life, as he'd once believed.
Cass, on the other hand, was his soul-mate. In a completely platonic way, obviously. But the girl, she'd been the first to believe in him, to fully trust and see the potential he held, and she'd never shied away from letting him know that. She was his best friend, the one person he trusted above all else, the one person he never wanted to disappoint.
They'd both had a hand to play in turning him into the man he now was, and for that alone, he would be eternally grateful for them.
"Well, I can't think what the Daleks need with me. I'm nothing to them." He murmured softly, mind returning to their current conundrum.
Rose shook her head, "You could be... whatever's inside that Ark is waking up and I've seen this happen before. The first time I saw a Dalek, it was broken. It was dying. But I touched it. The moment I did that... I brought it back to life. As the Doctor said... when you travel in time in the TARDIS, you soak up all this... um... background radiation. It's harmless, it's just there. But in the Time War, the Daleks evolved so they could use it as a power supply."
"That's not why they evolved," Cass whispered.
When both of them turned to her, she swallowed harshly, shame filling her as she remembered who she'd become during the war, who'd the council had forced her to become.
"They evolved because I kept killing them off. And it didn't work."
Mickey recovered from his shock first, the words not shifting his opinion of the redhead by one singular iota, "What then?"
When she turned to look at him, he couldn't help but grab her hand, noting the pain and shame in her eyes. The nightmares.
"They underestimated my intelligence." She sighed, adding with a small, clearly fake grin, "I'm very smart."
Rose wrapped an arm around her shoulders, reminding her silently that she was still there, still her little sister, "If the Daleks have got something inside that thing that needs waking up…"
"Then they need you," Mickey realised in horror, "Both of you."
"All three of us," Cass corrected quietly, explaining when he turned to her, "You've travelled in time too, Mick. You've been through the void. You have the same background radiation as Rosie and I."
"But why would they build something they can't open themselves?" The blonde asked.
"They didn't build it,"
"Then who did?"
The Time Lady tensed, apprehension filling her face as she whispered, "I did. It's Time Lord technology."
A second passed, until Mickey breathed, "It's bigger on the inside, isn't it?"
She nodded, and Rose whispered, "What's inside?"
Sec, who'd been rolling around them, replied, having heard the question, "The future."
When he moved away, Cass added, "Their future, to be more specific. The future of a dying race."
—
The Daleks backed away from the Genesis Ark, Caan shouting, "Final stage of awakening."
"Your handprint will open the Ark." Sec announced, turning to Rose.
The blonde was shaking in fright, but as Cass grabbed her hand, she inhaled sharply, replying, "Well tough, 'cos I'm not doing it."
"Obey, or they will die." At once, the other Daleks turned their laser-arms to both Mickey and Cass.
Immediately, Rose moved towards the Ark, whimpering, "I can't let them."
"Rose, don't!" Mickey yelled at her back.
Cass straightened her shoulders, slyly reaching out to her companion, grabbing the gun he'd stashed in the back of his pants, and hiding it in hers, Mickey never noticing as they hurried after Rose.
"Place your hand upon the casket." Sec ordered.
"Alright!" She yelled, "You're gonna kill us anyway, so what the hell?"
Her eyes moved to Cass, who nodded slowly, mouthing, "buy some time."
Rose nodded, turning to look Sec directly into its eye-stalk, "If you um... escaped the Time War... don't you want to know what happened?"
"Place your hand…" it began, only for her to interrupt him, "What happened to the Emperor?"
"The Emperor survived."
"'Till he met me…" she smirked, "'cos if these are gonna be my last words, then you're gonna listen. I met the Emperor. And I took the Time Vortex and I pulled it into his head and turned him into dust. Do you get that? The God of all Daleks... and I destroyed him."
Sec remained quiet, before yelling, "You will be exterminated!"
As his eyestalk moved, a shot hit his side, Cass striding towards them, a menacing gleam on her otherwise empty face, "You touch her, either of them, and I will kill you. The whole lot of you, actually."
"Daleks do not take threats!" It shouted.
"Good," Cass chuckled menacingly, "'Cause it wasn't a threat. It was a promise!"
Ambling towards them, she twirled the gun around her finger, continuing, "Would you look at that, the Cult of Skaro! Last time I saw all four of you, you were escaping the war, leaving the rest of your kind to die behind."
"The female will identify herself."
"Oh, that's offensive, Sec. Considering the last time we met, I nearly killed you. Would have too, if you hadn't transported with your brothers." Meeting the eye-stalk, she allowed her hearts to finally return to their normal rhythms, allowed the vortex to colour her eyes golden.
They backed away, clearly fearful of her, and she continued, a dark cheerfulness in her tone as she pointed the nozzle at the gun towards the Ark, "I also hadn't seen this thing in forever! What a trip down memory lane this day is turning out to be, right boys? But consider this…If I know the Ark, and I am who I am…what's to say I can't destroy it, then send you off to hell after it too?"
"Protect the Ark!" Thay yelled, as both Caan and Jast aimed their lasers at her, crying, "EXTERMINATE!"
"Oh now, hold on, wait a minute." A voice stated from the doorway.
Cass couldn't help the small smile that grew on her face, as she turned her head, meeting her tether's eyes for the first time since she'd become herself.
As he looked at her, his own widened minimally, sensing exactly what had changed, what she'd done.
"Alert, alert, you are the Doctor." The Daleks yelled, watching as he stood into the room, wearing his 3D glasses.
He smirked, coming to a stop right beside his tether, his hand reaching for her automatically, relief filling the both of them at the contact.
"Sensors report he is unarmed." Thay said.
"That's me," the Time Lord grinned, "always."
"Then you are powerless." Sec added.
"Not me. Never. " he turned to Rose, smiling, "How are you?"
"Oh, same old, you know." She grinned happily.
"Good! And Mickey the Hero!" He looked back at the boy, waving, "Nice to see ya!"
Mick rolled his eyes, smiling, "And you, boss."
Finally, he turned to his tether, finishing, "And you…never again. You pull another stunt like that again, and I will lock in our room until the end of time."
"Kinky," she smirked lightly, "You know I like the kinky talk."
In her head, she could hear him, the sound of his voice clearer than it had ever been, Never again, Cassie. I nearly lost my mind.
I know, she replied, no longer lowering her voice, watching as his shoulders shuddered lightly as her Time Lady essence finally registered in his head, in his hearts. I'm sorry honey.
Their attention was brought back to Jast when he yelled, "Social interaction will cease!"
"How did you survive the Time War?" Sec questioned.
"By fighting. On the front line. I was there at the fall of Arcadia. Someday I might even come to terms with that. But you lot, ran away!"
"We had to survive."
"The last four Daleks in existence. So what's so special about you?"
"The Cult of Skaro," Cass revealed, smirking when she noticed them all flinch back at the sound of her voice, "They're the Cult of Skaro. Four Daleks, daring to have names, an imagination, even."
Looking up at her tether, she continued, pointing to each Dalek as she named them with the nozzle of her gun, "That's Sec, Jast, Caan and Thay."
"I thought they were just a legend." He breathed in disbelief.
She scoffed, "I wish."
"Who are they?" Rose asked.
"A secret order. Above and beyond the Emperor himself." Cass replied, keeping her eyes on the pepper-pots, "Their job was to imagine. Think as the enemy thinks. Even dared to have names. All to find new ways of killing."
Sighing, she continued, "I almost killed them too, right at the end. But they managed to transport before I could. Sec wounded me, which is why they didn't recognise me at first glance. I look different."
"The Reaper will be EXTERMINATED!"
"Oh, fuck off," she huffed, "You've been yelling exterminate in my ears for centuries now, and the closest any of you got was a regeneration. I decimated your kind. Single-handedly, I managed to kill thousands of Daleks."
She could feel the Doctor tense beside her, could feel his confusion at her words, and rightfully so too. The Oracle hadn't fought in the war. According to the council, she'd been shepherded to another planet, to run predictions in safety.
And she hadn't…Because by the time she'd been fighting, Cass hadn't been The Oracle anymore, she'd been The Reaper.
They held onto things, after regeneration. And she'd been forced into training. Ruthless, endless and most times, deadly training. And at the end of it, when she'd been turned into a veritable machine, one whose sole goal was to kill, Rassilon had ordered a forced regeneration.
He'd strode into her prison cell one day, a needle filled with far too much waters from the Untempered Schism in his hand, and had struck her directly in the neck.
He'd watched, standing above her as she seized and spasmed on the floor, the vortex flooding her veins, burning her from the inside out. Changing her, regenerating her.
Until the person who rose was different. Not The Oracle, not the empathic Visionary of their people, the one who sought peace and fought against genocide.
The one who'd built the Ark.
But a killing machine, a soldier. A weapon, exactly as they'd wanted.
The Reaper.
She let him see all of these things, knowing that he needed to understand, to know exactly why they were so afraid of her. Why, by all rights, he should be too.
And when she felt a flash of fury from him, she couldn't help but flinch, pulling away, barricading her mind, her hearts, as though to keep herself from more pain.
Sending one thought through before she left, I'll leave, after we're done here. I promise, I'll leave. I'm sorry. Please forgive me, Doctor.
She didn't say his name, didn't feel like she had that right anymore. How could she, when in essence, she'd lied, and now the most pacific man in the universe had found himself tethered to the woman with the most blood on her hands.
Slowly, she detached her hand from his, holding it her other one, both behind her back, legs shoulders width apart; a soldier's stance.
He shook his head, tilting his chin towards the Ark, entire body tense, "What's that, then?"
"You don't know?" Rose asked, her eyes moving to Cass, noting how, even as she tried to hide it, her eyes were pained, heartbroken, "It's Time Lord tech."
"Both sides had secrets," he shrugged, not noticing the glare she was shooting him.
"It's a Prison Ship," Cass informed him, voice cold, empty. Devoid of everything that made her…herself, "It was meant to hold millions of Daleks in stasis inside."
When he turned to her, he couldn't help but flinch lightly, anger at what the Council, their own people, had to her thrumming through his veins.
Unfortunately though, Cass misunderstood, interpreting the move as being at the sight of her, and she looked away, saying, "I built it. I didn't want the War to wage on for years, as I'd seen it. I didn't want a genocide. I wanted peace. So I built it, in secret, hoping to reveal it to Rassilon when it was done, to dissuade him from the war. But he was blood-thirsty and arrogant. Refused to do it, locked it away. I hadn't seen it in centuries before today."
The words were clinical, uttered in such an emotionless tone. That, coupled with the block she'd put around the tether, keeping him from feeling her emotions, would have almost made it seem as though she didn't care.
But he knew her. Probably better than she knew herself. He could see the shame, and the guilt in her eyes, could see them in the way her shoulders hunched slightly, in how tightly her fists were clenched, knuckles a stark white.
"Time Lord science will restore Dalek supremacy." Sec cheered.
"They said one touch from a time traveller will wake it up." Rose informed them.
Cass shrugged, "A failsafe. One that makes use of the one thing a Dalek can never do…"
"Touch," the Doctor finished, turning to look at her, before whispering in awe, "You're a genius."
She tensed, confused at the reverence in his tone, but he'd turned back to the Daleks, "Sealed inside your casing. Not feeling anything... ever... from birth to death, locked inside a cold metal cage. Completely alone. And that explains your voice. No wonder you scream."
"The Doctor will open the Ark!" Sec yelled, eyestalk avoiding the redhead, knowing instinctively that if they tried to force her, it would spell their doom.
What they didn't know, was that forcing her tether was even worst.
"The Doctor will not." The Time Lord laughed contemptuously.
"You have no way of resisting."
"Well... you got me there. Although... there is always this." He pulled his sonic out of his pocket, flashing it around.
"A sonic probe?"
She couldn't help but snort lightly, knowing exactly how offended he'd feel at having his beloved sonic referred to as a 'probe'.
And sure enough, "That's 'screwdriver'." He corrected in offence.
Sec rolled a little closer, before backing away quickly when Cass turned to him with a raised brow, before muttering scornfully, "It is harmless."
"Oh yes. Harmless is just the word." The Doctor grinned, slowly walking to his tether, grabbing one her hands tightly, fingers weaving between her own, "That's why I like it. Doesn't kill, doesn't wound, doesn't maim. But I'll tell you what it does do, it is very good at opening doors."
He activated it, and immediately, the doors exploded inwards, Jake, his men, and the Cybermen leaping into action, firing their guns at the Daleks.
"Delete! Delete! Delete! Delete!" The Cybermen called as they fired shot after shot.
"Alert!" Dalek Caan yelled, "Casing impact, casing impact!"
As she prepared to join them, Cass found herself flung to the ground, the Doctor's arms around her, shielding her from harm, as Rose dropped down beside them.
Looking at the blonde, she ordered, "Rosie, get out of here!" Before looking at her tether, "Let me go. I'll help them."
"Never ever," he mumbled back, "I will never ever let you go."
Rose stumbled as she ran, nearly at the door, and Dalek Sec yelled, "Fire power insufficient! Fire power insufficient!"
The couple watch as Pete helped her up, before Cass whispered, "We need to go, now. The Cybers are too busy firing at the Daleks, and its gonna take them a second to recalibrate their firepower."
"Alright," he huffed, before quickly standing up, his hand still wrapped around her own, and pulling her behind him as they ran to the door.
They make it to the doorway, out of harm's way, just as a Cyberman yelled, "Daleks will be deleted. Delete! Delete!"