I had to split 17 into 17 and 18 lol. So I'm ahead by like 4 chapters so that's nice. Lazarus is a fun character because I understand his reasoning but I hate what he's done.

I watched as the lady began to break down. She had so wanted to be part of his world but she wasn't interested in him.

"You backed me because you saw a profit. Your concern was financial." Lazarus continued to drink.

I inched closer to Lazarus, there was something off...I didn't know what but it was faint. I knew that something was off like that time I felt something was off at New New York. Maybe I just needed to touch him and I would know the answers. I had made my way around the side of the desk and was so close to getting to him. Then I stopped, my instincts told me to stop. Stop where I was and wait. Wait for what? I was frustrated but I listened to my gut.

"Did that process make you even more cruel?" She gritted her teeth.

"No, my love. That I learnt from you. You have a gift for it." He said softly.

"Then you know that I'll protect my involvement in the project. I'm sure Mister Saxon will be interested-" She was cut off by the shout of Lazarus.

He pulled at his collar and gasped. I winced as I heard something in him shift and crackle.

"What's going on?"

"It must just be-" Lazarus crackled again.

"What is it?"

How daft can this woman be? There's obviously something wrong with him! I shifted in my place, still trusting my gut.

"I'll be fine in a moment. It's probably just a cramp." Lazarus chuckled before shouting and leaning backwards in an arch.

I winced as I willed myself to not be noticed.

He fell to the floor, clutching at his neck.

"Oh! Richard! Is it some sort of seizure? What should I do?" The woman could only watch as Lazarus rolled on the floor.

I inched forwards and grabbed his hand for a split second and then let go. I scampered back behind the desk. I'd gotten the same feeling. That broken feeling. Like something was very, very wrong. But unlike New New York, where I felt that nothing was supposed to be there, this time I just felt broken. A shatter of something. It'd made me lose my breath.

I heard a rip, tearing of clothing and a shadow grew above me. I knew that something was there, something that could tear me apart if I wasn't careful. I closed my eyes and wished so hard that I wouldn't be seen. I blocked out the screams of that lady and the grumbles of the strange creature who'd made her scream. Then it stopped. The screams, the growls, the crackling. I didn't move. I couldn't move. I could only watch as a completely normal Lazarus walked back to the elevators.

I waited a few minutes before taking a breath. I let go of every emotion that had overtaken my body and forced myself to relax. It didn't really work but it helped. I grasped my hands together, trying to stop shaking. That was unreal. I tried not to think of why the screams stopped.

"Charls!" I heard someone shout. It was the Doctor and Martha.

"Are you okay?"

I stood up, my legs barely supporting me. Out of all things to scare me shitless it has to be Lazarus. I could handle New New York, couldn't I? I shoved aside my instincts and bottled up my fear and stuffed it into a far corner of the library.

"I'm over here!" I called.

The Doctor ran around the corner, nearly slipping. He was quickly followed by Martha.

"You're okay!" Martha exclaimed and ran to me.

The Doctor switched on the lights and my eyes blurred.

"What happened?" The Doctor asked me.

I cleared my throat and steadied myself. I pointed behind the desk, "Left that here."

"Is that Lady Thaw?" Martha walked slowly towards the thin, skeletal remains of the woman.

I nodded, "Yeah."

Martha and the Doctor went to look at it up close. I stayed in my spot.

"Used to be." The Doctor examined her, "Now it's just a shell. Had all the life energy drained out, like squeezing the juice out of an orange."

I shuddered, "He changed. Wasn't pretty." I joked and smiled.

"Are you okay?" The Doctor asked again.

I nodded, "We can talk later. He's changed back. Doesn't look like a monster now."

The Doctor looked at me a little longer then went back to the body, "His DNA was fluctuating. The change demands energy. This might now have been enough."

"So he might do this again?" Martha concluded.

The Doctor gave a quick frown then stood up, "Probably."

I blinked, "You two can go check the reception. He'll probably be looking for more food. I'll stay here."

The Doctor ran up to me and grabbed my shoulders, looking me in the eyes, "Charlie Grey, we are not leaving you here."

I smiled, "You're not leaving me here," I placed my hands on top of his, "I'm staying because I've seen him and this is the top floor. If you run into him on the last floor he's more likely to run up because this is his base. I'm staying up here." I shrugged off the Doctor's hands and walked to the elevators.

"Fine," The Doctor agreed, "Promise me that you won't get ahead of yourself."

I scoffed, "I have good instincts, Doctor. Who do you think I am?"

I focused again, going invisible. I wouldn't freeze up this time and I wouldn't let Lazarus get away with murder. Martha smiled and hurried into the lift with the Doctor. I didn't have a second to prepare because as soon as their door closed - Lazarus and Martha's sister stepped out of the next lift. I held my breath, nearly choking on it too.

That was fast. I noted, Also he picked someone young this time, interesting. I nearly slapped myself. Idiot! Focus! Follow them! I kept quiet and watched from a good 4 or 5 meters away. They headed towards a staircase, I followed. They made their way to the very top, the roof where there wasn't glass blocking the view. The two of them stood, silent for a few moments. I guess Lazarus was reminiscing again, like he'd been with Lady Thaw. I steadied my breath and watched. He was facing the church again, I noticed. Must really love that place.

"The clock tower's beautiful all lit up like that." Martha's sister sighed.

"It's Southwark Cathedral. One of the oldest churches in London. Been around longer than I have." Lazarus looked at her, rather studied her.

"Well, you're looking pretty good for your age." Martha's sister joked.

I wanted to slam my head on the floor, I knew this girl didn't know what he was but the fact she was so casual around him made me want to vomit.

"Thank you." Lazarus smiled.

"Can I?" She reached a hand towards his face.

Lazarus faced her fully, "Of course."

She stroked his cheek with the back of her hand, "Still can't take it in."

Lazarus looked back at the cathedral, "I'm still adjusting myself. I've been working toward it for so many years, it's hard to believe the moment's finally arrived."

"And is it like you'd expected?" Martha's sister kept her eyes on Lazarus.

"I find that nothing's ever exactly like you expect. There's always something to surprise you. Between the idea and the reality, between the motion and the act-"

"Falls the shadow." The Doctor finished.

I looked up, he hadn't seen me and neither had Martha, no one had. I stood up and went to the Doctor's side, tapping his shoulder in a way he'd know it was me. That he'd know I was safe.

Lazarus turned around, "So the mysterious Doctor knows his Eliot. I'm impressed."

Martha's sister looked startled, "Martha, what are you doing here?"

"Tish, get away from him." Martha said calmly.

"What? Don't tell me what to do." Martha's sister, apparently called Tish, sassed back.

"I wouldn't have thought you had time for poetry, Lazarus, what with you being busy defying the laws of nature and all that." The Doctor said sarcastically.

Lazarus inspected him, "You're right, Doctor. One lifetime's been too short for me to do everything I'd like. How much more I'll get done in two or three or four."

The Doctor shook his head, "Doesn't work like that. Some people live more in twenty years than others do in eighty. It's not the time that matters, it's the person."

"But if it's the right person, what a gift it would be." Lazarus spoke softly.

I stepped out from behind the Doctor, still not letting myself be seen. I gritted my teeth and whispered under my breath, "There are lifespans for a reason. Time always has to run out, for everyone."

The Doctor didn't hear me, or he ignored me, "Or what a curse. Look at what you've done to yourself."

"Who are you to judge me?"

"Over here, Tish." Martha beckoned to her sister.

"You have to spoil everything, don't you?" Tish walked up to Martha, "Every time I find someone nice, you have to go and find fault."

I growled and pulled myself away from their conversation, decided that it was no better time to be seen. I turned my head to the Doctor and looked at him. He seemed to hold such a world in his eyes. A world of time that seemed to never end and it caused him pain.

"Doctor," I bumped him, "We should go."

I guess that curiosity got the better of him because he stayed still. Lazarus fell to the floor and began to crackle. I didn't look at him, keeping my back to the enemy. It was stupid, it's the one thing I didn't like. It went against all battle instincts in my body. I listened as Lazarus' body grew and changed.

"Run!" The Doctor shouted and pushed me towards the door.

Martha, Tish, the Doctor and I ran down the steps. The Doctor used his sonic screwdriver on the door and bolted with us. Of course, the fastest way down was a lift. So we had to wait.

"Are you okay?" Martha asked her sister as we waited.

Tish looked absolutely mortified, "I was going to snog him."

The lights flickered as the door that the Doctor locked was beginning to break. A voice echoed telling everyone about a security alert.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"An intrusion. It triggers a security lockdown. Kills most of the power. Stops the lifts, seals the exits." Tish recited.

"He must be breaking through that door. The stairs, come on!" The Doctor shouted and ran.

I sighed and ran after him, "How strong do you think that door is?"

I heard a loud crashing, "Guess not that strong then."

"We haven't got much time!" The Doctor shouted as we took a quick look up then ran into the reception room.

"Are all the doors locked?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.

The Doctor looked around, "Tish, is there another way out of here?"

"There's an exit in the corner, but it'll be locked now." She pointed at the corner of the room.

The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver and set it, tossing it to Martha, "Martha, setting fifty four. Hurry."

Martha and Tish dashed to the door. I stayed and watched as the people seemed to not care or even know what was going on.

The Doctor went to the center and began to make an announcement, "Listen to me! You people are in serious danger! You need to get out of here right now!"

"Don't be ridiculous. The biggest danger here is choking on an olive." A woman called out.

I growled and shoved people away from the stairs, not really bothering to tell them why. They wouldn't listen to a gut feeling but they did listen to shoves.

I turned away and had run to the Doctor as soon as I'd heard Lazarus crash through more glass. Something in me refused to see that creature. There wasn't anything I could do besides move people out of the way and cower. I heard people running and I felt the Doctor move me out of the way. I heard the doors open and more running. Then the sound of a sharp object being unsheathed. I looked up and at Lazarus, my instincts finally letting go of flight. I saw a tail claw being swung at a woman so I acted. Don't really know why but I did.

I jumped and pushed her out of the way while also avoiding being hit myself. Although, it did piss off Lazarus a lot. I had cost him a meal. Actually two meals. I backed away as he stomped towards me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Martha help her family. I smiled, what a Doctor. What a human. A roar made me focus back on the monster at hand.

"Lazarus!" I heard the Doctor shout, "Leave them alone!"

I backed towards the stairs, slowly cornering myself, "Doctor, don't you dare!"

"What's the point?" The Doctor shouted, catching Lazarus' attention, "You can't control it. The mutation's too strong. Killing those people won't help you. You're a fool. A vain old man who thought he could defy nature. Only Nature got her own back, didn't she? You're a joke, Lazarus! A footnote in the history of failure!"

As the Doctor spoke, Lazarus slowly stomped towards him. I looked at the Doctor then at the direction he was headed. I ran a little before he ran, down the corridor and we lured Lazarus.

The Doctor looked very upset with me, "What are you doing!"

I grinned, "You've got a plan, right?"

"I had a plan for me! Not for us!" The Doctor exclaimed.

I chuckled, "You'd better get that mind going then because now you've got me!"

We launched ourselves around the corner with the help of the handrails and went to a room full of piping. The Doctor shushed me then pointed up, I nodded and began to climb. We went slowly, trying not to make noise as we ducked under piping and control panels.

"It's no good, Doctor. You or your friend can't stop me." I heard Lazarus' whisper.

I held my breath as his shadow passed by.

"Is that the same arrogance you had when you swore nothing had gone wrong with your device?" The Doctor paused then kept walking.

"The arrogance is yours. You can't stand in the way of progress."

I huffed, "Progress is murder?"

"It is a necessary sacrifice." Lazarus clamored closer towards us.

The Doctor pulled me to the floor as he peeked around the corner, "That's not your decision to make." He began to stand again when the lights flickered on.

I looked up to see the face of a mutated Lazarus, I had two reactions to seeing him. I followed through with one. One was, like any human, to run away. I guess the other reaction was from being part Gray because I punched Lazarus right on the nose. I felt my heart beating in my chest at a rate it probably shouldn't be at but hit him anyways. There was a crunch and felt pain spread through my hand, his skin was much tougher than I had anticipated. I punched him! In the nose! I clutched my wrist and backed away. His neck retracted back to his body before his mouth opened and he hissed. The Doctor took the opportunity to grab me and start running.

"You punched him!" The Doctor exclaimed while we ran.

I nodded, unable to speak.

We ran to a room similar to a biology classroom in schools but with more stuff. The Doctor surveyed the room then jumped on a table, tinkering around with the light, then with a switch on the table, then with a chord on a different table. I couldn't help, I'd punched Lazarus with my right arm. I could only duck under a desk and hope that we wouldn't die. The Doctor ducked down once he'd heard Lazarus again.

"Let me see." The Doctor held out his hand.

I held my arm closer to me, "You're busy. This can wait."

The Doctor frowned and continued on, turning handles and whatnot.

"Your little friend has a strong punch. Not strong enough though. Only human, after all." Lazarus taunted, "Why don't you come out and face me?"

The Doctor and I circled around the tables, he continued to turn the handles for the gas to the max.

"Have you looked in a mirror lately?" The Doctor quipped then stood up to face Lazarus, "Why would I want to face that? Hmm?" He raised his eyebrows then pulled me to the exit. Hitting a switch before running through the doors. A heat exploded from the room followed by us getting knocked off our feet. I lost my breath as we landed on the floor and nearly cried out in pain after landing on my arm.

The Doctor helped me to my feet then started running again. We ran down the corridor and into Martha at a corner. The Doctor grabbed her and looked an angry surprised.

"What are you doing here?" He asked with a breath.

"I'm returning this." Martha held out the sonic screwdriver, "Thought you might need it."

The Doctor pocketed the sonic screwdriver, "How did you?"

"I heard the explosion. I guessed it was you." Martha smiled.

"We blasted Lazarus. Charls punched his nose." He pointed at my hand.

"Did you kill him?" Martha looked hopeful.

A loud crash behind me told me that, no, we did not kill him. I ran forwards and pushed the two of them around the corner.

"More sort of annoyed him!" I shouted as we ran again.

We'd made our way back to the reception room, with the people all cleared out it looked more like a lobby.

"What now?" Martha looked around, "We've just gone round in a circle."

Lazarus bounded from around the corner, slipping on tablecloths. The Doctor rushed towards the white box that still sat in the middle of the room. He opened the door and Martha jumped in. I didn't run in with them. It wasn't like the TARDIS where you could fit a house inside a small box. There wasn't going to be enough room for all three of us to fit.

"Charls!" The Doctor shouted at me.

I shook my head and went invisible before shouting, "Trust me!"

I ran to the side as a worried Doctor shut the door. I coughed as Lazarus' tail knocked me to the floor. He was faster than I'd anticipated but I'd managed to keep concentrated on being invisible. I wheezed as I got to my feet, Lazarus was busy with the white box. It would get me enough time to set up something to distract him while the Doctor came up with a solution. I looked around me, there were only broken dishes and tablecloths in the room. I snapped my fingers as I tried to come up with something.

I watched as Lazarus circled around his creation, not wanting to destroy it. Still somewhat human. I circled around the room and gathered all the tablecloths that were lying on the floor. Come on, Doctor. You're clever, think of something. I kicked the glass into a small pile by the tablecloths. I took up a shard of glass in my hand and a tablecloth in the other, wincing when it cut my palm a little. I walked towards Lazarus, he'd pushed the big red button that started the machine. So he's still smart as ever. I ducked as he turned around to see if the button worked. I knew that I wouldn't be able to shut the machine off by myself, I would have to stick to my own plan. I raised my arm and drove the glass into his tail then proceeded to wrap his head in the tablecloth. It would have to work for now.

I ducked down as he spun around to see what had injured him. Lucky I did because I avoided the main blast of whatever came out of the box. I said the main blast because the brightest energy was at the level of Lazarus' height. I got the brunt of the echoes that came off that blast. I don't suggest ever getting in the way of an energy blast. It made my head spin and my chest ache. The blast faded and Lazarus had gone back to being human.

I coughed and rolled onto my back, gulping in air that had been knocked out of me.

"Charls!" I heard Martha exclaim followed by the sound of her heels.

"Really shouldn't take that long just to reverse the polarity." The Doctor sighed as he walked towards the naked Lazarus, "I must be a bit out of practice."

"Martha, I'm fine." I pushed her away a bit.

She looked at me skeptically, "You sure? Because you look like absolute shit."

I nodded and got to my feet, I've been getting knocked over too many times today. I sighed and walked to the Doctor.

"Oh, God." Martha whispered, "He seems so human again. It's kind of pitiful."

The cloth I'd thrown on him earlier covered him like a blanket and there was a bloody piece of glass on the floor a little away from Lazarus. Although I wasn't sure if that was his blood.

"Eliot saw that, too." I coughed, "This is the way humanity ends."

"Not with a bang, but with a whimper." The Doctor looked at us sadly.