More demon boi~ Next chapter is also finished and I'll yeet that here at some point this coming week. After that, I'm skipping ahead to Army of Ghosts because the next two episodes are not my favorite and I avoid them when I can. Hope you all enjoy!


"Everyone all right?! What happened? What was it?" The Doctor called out as he and Rose rushed into the corridor where Jefferson, Toby, and a few other crew were catching their breath.

"Hull breach. We were open to the elements. Another couple of minutes and we'd have been inspecting that black hole at close quarters," Jefferson explained, but the whole base had shaken and the Doctor was uneasy after seeing what had happened with the Ood only moments before this.

"That wasn't a quake. What caused it?"

"We've lost sections eleven to thirteen Everyone all right?" Zach asked over the comms as Jefferson looked around for a headcount.

"We've got everyone here except Scooti. Scooti, report... Scooti Manista? That's an order. Report."

"She's all right. I've picked up her biochip. She's in Habitation three. Better go and check if she's not responding. She might be unconscious. How about that, eh? We survived."

Jefferson let out a breath, not exactly relieved but glad that the mess was over. "Habitation three. I don't often say this, but I think we could all do with a drink. Come on."

The Doctor looked around though, noticing one other missing person. "Hold on. Ornias is missing too."

"He went with Scooti, didn't he?" Rose reminded him. "He could be with her."

"Right. What happened?" He asked Toby who was on the ground still looking more than uneasy.

"I don't. I don't know. I was working and then I can't remember. A-All that noise. The room was falling apart. There was no air."

"Come on. Up you get," Rose said, helping him to his feet. "Come and have some protein one."

"Oh, you've gone native," the Doctor teased her.

"Oi, don't knock it. It's nice. Protein one with just a dash of three," she chirped with a wink as they moved into Habitation 3 where Ornias was idly picking at the dirt under his nails and Ida was checking on Scooti who looked a bit confused.

"Ornias! There you are," the Doctor chimed, glad he was alright.

Ornias himself raised a brow and hopped off the railing he'd been perched on, giving Toby a glance before looking at the Doctor. "Despite knowing what I am, you are still somehow concerned over my safety?"

"Well, you've been hurt before."

"And healed perfectly fine within hours," Ornias reminded him, making him rub the back of his neck.

"Doesn't mean I can't be worried. What happened, by the way? Weren't you and Scooti close to the breach?"

Ornias shrugged. "Dunno. Possibly."

"Possibly? What's that supposed to mean?" The Doctor said with a frown before the ever-present sound of drilling slowly came to a stop.

"It's stopped," Ida muttered, confusing Rose.

"What was that? What is it?"

"The drill," the Doctor explained.

"We've stopped drilling. We've made it. Point Zero," Ida said in a rush, drawing the rest of the crew to get what they needed to prepare to go down into the drilling area.

The Doctor stopped Ornias though before they could follow the others, earning a raised brow from the demon. "I need you to do something for me. A favor."

"Making a deal with the devil, are you?" Ornias purred, amused when the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Yes, yes. Look. I need to go down there where the drill is to get the Tardis. I'm the only one who can pilot her back, so I need you to keep an eye on Rose."

Ornias sighed. "As if I hadn't already planned on doing such a thing. Given the two of you are my entertainment, why would I not ensure your companion is alive and well?"

"I never know with you," the Doctor said with a teasing smile before it faltered. "Thing is, I get the feeling you're not telling me everything about what's happening here."

"Isn't it your job to discern what happens on our adventures?"

"Usually, sure, but this is different, isn't it? The writing, the telepathy. You said it yourself, this is your field. If whatever is going on here is something you know about, something you are the only one capable of handling…" The Doctor sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I might regret saying this but if that's the case, then I want you to deal with it."

Ornias looked mildly surprised, placing a hand on his chest. "Dear me. Are you giving me permission to do things my way, Doctor?"

"To an extent," the Doctor added, pointing at him. "I want you to keep these people safe if you can."

Ornias eyed him, eyes flaring gold. "And should there be a choice?"

"A choice?"

"Should say… Rose be put at risk along with another and I have to choose between them…" Ornias asked, watching the Doctor closely for a reaction.

It was a cruel thing to do, testing the Doctor like that and the Doctor's jaw went tight. He wouldn't put one life ahead of another usually but when Rose was put into the mix, the answer was obvious. Ornias knew this too but wanted to hear him say it, to admit that the man who always tried to save everyone had favorites when it came to certain decisions. That he wasn't such a "good man" when it came to his friends being in danger over a stranger.

"Rose is your top priority," the Doctor spat, earning a small smirk from the demon.

"Of course. One other thing." Ornias leaned in close and the Doctor stiffened but didn't pull away as the demon's golden eyes bore into his and his hand reached up to lightly caress the Doctor's neck in a way that sent a chill down his spine. "How demonic can I be?"

The Doctor struggled to breathe for a moment, let alone get an answer out until he took a step back and cleared his throat; turning his gaze away from Ornias to break the spell he'd been under.

"J-Just… try to hold off going all out. If whatever this is, is related to you, then the last thing we need is the humans causing trouble."

"Of course," Ornias hummed; his eyes returning to normal. "Wouldn't want them to turn on Rose, now would we?"

"Stop it," the Doctor scolded, seeing the backhanded comment for what it was—another jab at him for prioritizing Rose over the others.

"Yes, yes. Don't you have a big orange jumpsuit to get into?" Ornias drawled with a wave of his hand as the Doctor shook his head and stepped out, giving him one last stern look.

"Just behave, would you?"

Ornias smirked. "Never."


I lightly picked at some dirt under my nails as the Doctor and Rose said their heartfelt goodbyes. Why they feel the need to do so, I haven't a clue. I already said I would watch over Rose and the Doctor can take care of himself. I glanced at an Ood that strolled past idly. There's a bigger threat up here anyway.

"Oi," the Doctor called out, drawing my gaze to him as he held out his arms. "No goodbye from you then?"

"Oh, yes, of course. How dare I not partake in a heartfelt goodbye," I drawled sarcastically, waving a hand. "Goodbye, Doctor. Farewell forever. Enjoy your trip down a deep, dark hole where your only danger is a cave collapse while we're stuck up here twiddling our thumbs until your return."

Rose chuckled, handing him his helmet to put on. "Don't mind him… It's funny because people back home think that space travel's going to be all whizzing about and teleports and anti-gravity, but it's not, is it? It's tough."

"I'll see you later," the Doctor said with a smile and she smiled back.

"Not if I see you first," she chimed, pulling his helmet down to kiss it as I wolf-whistled, getting a firm finger pointed at me before he stepped into the pod with Ida and the countdown began.

The pod eventually reached the bottom but I had turned my focus elsewhere, sensing that the Beast was attempting something once more. Rose is here by me, so normally that wouldn't be an issue but the Doctor wants me to help all the humans. I glanced over at Toby who was wringing his hands uneasily, seated on the floor. He's already a lost cause. Demons won't release their possessed unless forced to and he has the most darkness in comparison to the others. Getting another human wouldn't be easy for him.

I clicked my tongue, muttering under my breath. "Just my luck for us to run into another demonic entity. A delusional one at that."

It was possible it was just an alien creature of some sort with similar abilities but the presence I'd felt was so familiar to those I'd once been used to that I wasn't sure. It was better to treat it like a demon either way. Though the real question is, how did it get here and why did I not notice it? I drummed my fingers on my elbow as the others chatted with Ida and the Doctor in the cavern below. Then, Danny chimed in from Ood Habitation.

"Captain, sir. There's something happening with the Ood."

"What are they doing?" Zach asked as I turned my gaze to the Ood with us.

"They're staring at me. I've told them to stop, but they won't."

"Danny, you're a big boy. I think you can take being stared at."

"But the telepathic field, sir. It's at basic one hundred. I've checked. there isn't any fault. It's definitely one hundred."

"But that's impossible."

"What's basic one hundred mean?" Rose asked, getting a response from Danny and Zach as I shifted over toward her just in case.

"They should be dead."

"Basic one hundred's brain death… but they're safe? They're not actually moving?"

"No, sir."

"Keep watching them. And you, Jefferson, keep a guard on the Ood."

Jefferson was in the room with us and ordered the two guards with him to have their weapons ready.

"You can't fire a gun in here. What if you hit a wall?" Rose questioned, concerned.

"I'm firing stock fifteen. It only impacts upon organics. Keep watch. Guard them."

"Is everything all right up there?" The Doctor asked over the comms and I scoffed as the humans lied to him.

"Yeah, yeah."

"It's fine."

"Great."

"Oh, yeah. Just peachy, isn't it?" I hummed. "The Ood are brain-dead and being controlled by a telepathic being while we just sit around chatting about a cave."

"Ornias," Rose scolded.

"No point in hiding it from them," I informed her. "They're about to find out anyway."

"How do you mean?"

"We found something," the Doctor chimed in then, stopping our conversation as I smiled sickly sweet at Rose as she frowned. "It looks like metal. Like some sort of seal. I've got a nasty feeling the word might be a trapdoor. Not a good word, trapdoor. Never met a trapdoor I liked."

"The edge is covered with those symbols," Ida added as Zach chimed in.

"Do you think it opens?"

"That's what trapdoors tend to do. Ornias might have a clue if he was down here. He's got a good idea on the symbols, anyway."

"I already said they weren't translatable," I sighed. "Though yes, I suppose it could be script used for sealing something or as a warning or whatever else. I'd have to see it to let you know."

"Trapdoor doesn't do it justice. It's massive, Zach. About thirty feet in diameter," Ida breathed.

"Any way of opening it?" Zach questioned and I raised a brow at Rose.

"Really? You humans. I spy a trapdoor with demonic script on it. I know! Let's open it." I looked over at Jefferson as I leaned against a railing with my arms folded over my chest. "Do you lot go poking bears with sticks too? Hell, that was a right laugh when those early humans had to figure it all out. Is this serpent dangerous? Oh, I don't know. Poke it."

"God, Ornias. Could you stop with the insults already?" Rose complained. "I get it being dangerous an' all but we can't exactly do much else, can we?"

I raised a brow. "I mean, did 'leaving it alone' occur to you at all? Seems like a viable option to me."

Rose groaned as I chuckled before Zach spoke up.

"Toby, did you get anywhere with decoding it?"

"I already said you can't decode it," I grumbled, annoyed at being ignored but Toby stood, drawing my attention to him with a light frown.

"I know what it says."

"Then, tell them," Rose urged as Jefferson shot him a frown.

"When did you figure that out?"

"It doesn't matter, just tell them."

"Yeah, don't think you'll like what he has to say," I muttered as he uncovered his face and turned to look at us.

His eyes blazed red and the symbols again covered his face as the voice of the Beast emanated out of him, silencing the humans.

"These are the words of the Beast. And he has woken. He is the heart that beats in the darkness. He is the blood that will never cease. And now he will rise."

Jefferson leveled his gun at Toby, fear in his voice as he barked out an order. "Office, stand down. Stand down!"

"What is it? What's he done?" The Doctor questioned, Rose having held down the comm button at some point.

"Jefferson? Report. Report!"

"Officer, as Commander of Security, I order you to stand down and be confined. Immediately!" Jefferson bellowed as Rose answered those on the comm.

"He's come out in those symbols all over his face. They're all over him."

"Mister Jefferson. Tell me, sir. Did your wife ever forgive you?" The Beast asked, making the man falter as a grin stretched across my face.

"I don't know what you mean," he muttered, uneasy.

"Let me tell you a secret. She never did."

"Well, now," I hummed, strolling up beside Jefferson and lightly nudging his gun away as I stepped before the Beast, whose crazed smirk fell at the sight of me. "Such a cheap shot. I mean, really. The man's wife? Of all things? Couldn't find anything better?"

"Ornias, what are you doing?" Rose asked softly.

"Exposing his parlor tricks, of course. If he was truly a beast worth his salt, then he would know how to lead up to the big stuff. Bringing out someone's darkness that quickly is no way to play with your food." I waved a hand. "I mean, sure, you get that added bit of surprise. 'How does he know my darkest secret?'" I drawled in a mocking tone. "But then the effect's gone and you get retaliation instead. I'm sure Mr. Jefferson here was about to double down on his orders, correct?"

Jefferson shifted slightly on his feet, confirming my conclusion as his hands tightened on his gun.

"See? Now, any good demon would start off small," I purred, taking a step forward and making the Beast take a half step back. "Work your way in, do the small little white lies then build up from there. You've got nowhere to go but back when you toy with their biggest secret. If you give that up too soon, you lose your catch. It runs or it fights back. You need to drag it out, otherwise—" I appeared behind the Beast hovering a hand around his throat as I spoke in his ear. "—you bite off more than you can chew."

He whipped around but I was back where I had been, leaving the humans confused if I'd moved at all or if they'd imagined it. Which was kind of the point. Jefferson leveled his gun again though, still uneasy but determined as I'd predicted.

"Officer, you stand down and be confined."

"Or what?" The Beast snarled, angry with my interference and mocking but seeing no threat from the humans.

"Or under the strictures of Condition Red, I am authorized to shoot you."

He smirked though, making me raise a brow. "But how many can you kill?"

His eyes glowed bright red and his mouth opened in a scream as the black marks on his body floated away and into the Ood. It was a nice trick, I had to admit. It gave the humans a false sense of security in thinking that the possession had transferred to the Ood. It didn't, of course, but they didn't know that. I'll be lucky if they're cautious of him after this. What a pain. I'd love to just kill him but it would give the Beast too much time to corrupt another and the Doctor wants me to help everyone. I sighed lightly as the Ood spoke in a similar gravely tone to the Beast himself.

"We are the Legion of the Beast," they said as the Doctor and Zach shouted over the comms, going unanswered until Rose and Jefferson managed to gather themselves enough to respond. "The Legion shall be many, and the Legion shall be few. He has woven himself in the fabric of your life since the dawn of time. Some may call him Abaddon. Some may call him Kroptor. Some may call him Satan or Lucifer."

That old rage burned in me again and I lifted my lips in a snarl, eyes burning gold.

"I told you…" I growled, cracking my neck and flexing my hand as the lights flickered. "You're nothing like Him."

The lights turned off with a snap of my fingers and my wings came out as I burst forward and easily snapped the necks of the three Ood who'd been with us. The comms went to static as well, cutting off the Beast's little rant, and I hauled him up by the front of his shirt to slam him against the railing—teetering him over the edge as his eyes flared red to match my gold ones.

"Last chance," I murmured. "I may have been asked to keep the rest of these humans safe but don't think for a second that I wouldn't throw every last one of them to their deaths if it would get you to shut up. And then where would you be?" I asked, making his eyes rake over me in what could only be unease. "Trapped down here on your own to get sucked into that black hole. Weak and alone. A useless demon who thought he could play at being Lucifer when he doesn't even hold a candle to Him. Tell me, Beast, who are you even? A demon, I can see, but which one?"

The Beast didn't answer, just growling in return and I scoffed.

"What? You don't remember? Or are you going to just make me guess? Because the way I see it, you're a low-level Beast. Nothing better than a grunt who goes siphoning off souls from the weak and dying, and nowhere near my level. So, you need to be smart about this and understand that you're no match for me. Pressing your luck won't get you anywhere but someplace worse than Hell. You have your prey, so leave mine alone."

"Ornias?" Rose called out, voice tight with concern and I huffed, throwing the Beast back onto the floor and stepping away as I snapped my fingers and the lights flickered back on.

"W-What the…" Jefferson breathed, seeing the dead Ood on the floor and I waved a hand.

"Don't worry about thanking me. It was in our mutual interest to deal with them quickly, especially when there are more on the way."

"More?"

"What? You don't think the Beast only possessed these three, do you?" I questioned him, my brow raised as I turned to Rose. "Please tell me humans aren't this daft normally."

She lightly smacked my arm at the jab before the nearest door announced that it was being opened. I didn't move toward it, already sensing who was on the other side as Danny locked the door saying the Ood were coming and Rose tried to get a hold of the Doctor.

"How many of them?" Jefferson asked.

"All of them! All fifty!"

Jefferson went to open the door to fight them as Danny tried to warn him.

"But they're armed! It's the interface device. I don't know how, but they're using it as a weapon!"

Jefferson didn't care and went to open the door but I placed a hand on it with a sickly sweet smile.

"How about we don't, yes?" I said, sensing the Ood on the other side.

"Get out of my way."

"What? So you can off and get yourself and the rest of you humans killed? No thanks."

"We need to stop them!"

I rolled my eyes, lightly nudging his gun away from me. "Yes, yes but you're not seeing the pointlessness of this situation, are you? You're one man, with a gun, against 47 armed and possessed Ood."

"47?" Danny questioned and I lazily pointed at the three killed ones, making him pale.

"Now, either we ignore the Ood on the other side of the door until we have a better plan, or I will take care of them myself."

"You?" Jefferson said in disbelief.

"Well, I handled those three rather well, I would think. A few more wouldn't be hard. Though, I do suggest that you don't go out of your way to question my methods when I do kill them. I'm holding back for your sake, not mine, after all. You lot think you're scared now, you wouldn't want to see me when I'm angry." I smirked, eyes flashing gold and he took a hesitant step back.

"...What can you do?"

"I can deal with them and buy us more time. Honestly, if I really wanted to, I could end this whole thing but then the Doctor wouldn't get his answers, you lot would be down at least one member of your team, and… Oh! We might fall into the black hole. Wouldn't that be exciting?"

Jefferson turned to Rose. "And you trust this man?"

"Not as far as I can throw him," Rose grumbled, making me place a hand on my heart in mock pain.

"Rose, you wound me."

She rolled her eyes. "Just… Just take care of the Ood, Ornias. I'm not happy about it but if there's nothing we can do to stop them, then at least you can make it quick."

I was a bit surprised Rose was so willing to let me go but shrugged. The Ood were technically dead anyway. The second the Beast possessed their minds they were gone, disconnected from their religion and the rest of their species. They fought against him but had no chance. Not only because their opponent was a demon but the humans suppressing them made them weak. The least I could do is end them before their religion is tainted by that fake.

I opened the door and slipped into the hall where the other Ood were, closing the door behind me and sighing lightly. "Apologies, but I do believe you're in the way."


Jefferson didn't trust Ornias at all but he had to admit, the man could handle himself well. It only took him a moment to return from dealing with the Ood on the other side of the door and Jefferson went back over to where Rose was at the drop pod comms as Zach chimed in.

"Jefferson, what's happening there?"

"I've got very little ammunition, sir. How about you?"

"All I've got is a bolt gun with, uh… all of one bolt. I could take out a grand total of one Ood. Fat lot of good that is."

Jefferson hesitated only a moment, giving Ornias a small glance as the man perched on a railing and dropped his chin in his hand, seemingly bored now."Given the emergency, I recommend strategy nine."

"Strategy nine agreed. Right. We need to get everyone together. Rose? What about Ida and the Doctor? Any word?"

"I can't get a reply. Just nothing. I keep trying, but it's—"

"Allow me," Ornias hummed, flicking the side of the machine and making the controls spark before the Doctor's voice came over the comm.

"Ow! What's with the interference, Ornias? We're still here, you know."

"Then, you should try harder to answer when you're called, Doctor," Ornias replied as Rose held the comm tight.

"He's right! You could've said, you stupid—"

The comms gave feedback again and the Doctor complained.

"Ornias!"

"Wasn't me," Ornias hummed, earning a huff from the man on the other side.

"Well, anyway, it's the both of us. Me and Ida. Hello. But the seal opened up. It's gone. All we've got left is this chasm."

"How deep is it?" Zach asked.

"Can't tell. It looks like it goes down forever."

"Hm, the pit is open then," Ornias chimed in, leaning back on the railing and glancing upward idly. "That would explain why the Beast tried to make its move. Opening the seals—if they are seals—would make things easier."

"But there's nothing… I mean, there's nothing coming out?" Zach questioned, worried.

"No, no. No sign of the Beast."

"But it said Satan," Rose pointed out, glancing at Ornias who scoffed.

"Believe me, that thing is hardly Satan. A small-time demon, perhaps, but if he was the actual dark Lord not even I would stand a chance." Ornias's gaze drifted over the humans in the room. "You all wouldn't know what to do with yourselves in His presence other than wish for death."

The humans shivered, all of them made uneasy by his words as Jefferson's suspicions worsened.

"And how do you know all this?"

"Well, isn't it obvious? It's because I'm—"

Rose covered Ornias's mouth with a tight smile. "He's a… a very religious fanatic!"

No one looked convinced by that and Ornias looked rather disgusted at the idea, making Rose grimace when he licked her hand to get her to let him go.

"That is the most disgusting and insulting thing you've said yet, Rose Tyler," Ornias complained as she shot him a look.

She couldn't exactly scold him for what he'd been about to do but she'd hoped it was obvious how poorly things would turn out if he revealed what he was. She could only hope he would drop the topic for now as Zach chimed in over the comms.

"Ida? I recommend that you withdraw immediately."

"But we've come all this way."

"Okay, that was an order. Withdraw. When that thing opened, the whole planet's shifted. One more inch and we fall into the black hole. So this thing stops right now."

"But it's not much better up there with the Ood," she challenged but that hardly stopped him.

"I'm initiating strategy nine, so I need the two of you back up top immediately, or no—Ida? Ida!" Zach complained as Ornias snorted.

"She'll make her own decision, I'm sure. In the meantime, I suggest we figure out what we should be doing. The Ood are a problem and as much as I don't mind dealing with them, it'd be far easier if we sorted them out another way."

"He's right," Rose agreed. "Soon as the Doctor and Ida are back up here, we need to get out of here."

"We don't even know if they're going to agree to come back," Jefferson scoffed just as the comms went off.

"Rose, we're coming back," the Doctor said, making her let out a sigh of relief.

"Best news I've heard all day."

Jefferson remembered another problem though, arming his gun and pointing it at Toby.

"What're you doing?" Rose asked, worried.

"He's infected. He brought that thing on board. You saw it."

"Are you going to start shooting your own people now, Is that what you're going to do? Is it?" Rose argued.

"If necessary."

"Well then, you'll have to shoot me 'if necessary,' so what's it going to be? Look at his face. Whatever it was, is gone. It passed into the Ood. You saw it happen. He's clean."

"Yeah, not really," Ornias hummed, drawing their attention. "I mean, it's a good trick, I'll give him that but much like the Ood once he gets in there and gets full control there's no coming back."

"No. No, you're fibbing," Rose tried, throwing a hand over at Toby. "Look at him! He's actin' the same as before."

"It's a demon, Rose," Ornias replied, giving her a look. "You think I don't know what demons are capable of? Me? The human is possessed, simple as that. Step into a demon's territory with the amount of darkness he does and given enough time, the demon creeps in until the human is no longer there. And sure, maybe the demon keeps a bit of the personality and memories intact, but that's all the better. Makes it easier to trick others into offering themselves up as well. It's what demons do."

Jefferson armed his gun, raising it once more after having lowered it slightly at Rose's protests. "So, I shoot him."

"No!" Rose shouted as Ornias sighed and lightly pointed the barrel away from Toby.

"Not quite. While he is possessed and there is no hope for him by the end of this, he is still useful. He is the demon's pawn. His only pawn other than the Ood. Killing him now just offers up the chance that the demon turns his gaze onto the next pawn. Namely, you, Jefferson."

"Me?" Jefferson scoffed.

"Well, between you cheating on your wife, the near divorce, the old military PTSD that you're struggling to cover up, and that big ol' bravado that you use to hide your insecurities and you're the next easiest prize."

Jefferson sputtered as Ornias cracked a small smile and turned to Toby with a wink.

"See? Start with the small stuff and you get better results without all the gun-pointing nonsense."

Toby frowned at him but turned to beg Jefferson. "Y-You're really going to believe him over me?"

Ornias raised a brow. "I'm not the one who was sporting demonic script all over my face and speaking the words of the Beast, now was I?"

"Shut up!" Toby complained, getting a shrug from Ornias as Jefferson debated for a moment as to what the best move was.

"Any sign of trouble, I'll shoot him."

"Tetchy," Ornias hummed as the group begrudgingly settled in for waiting for the Doctor and Ida to return.

"Okay, we're in. Bring us up," Ida chimed over the comms a moment later and Jefferson started the lift, but then the power went out and the Beast's voice echoed through the darkness.

"This is the darkness. This is my domain," it declared, earning a sigh from Ornias as the monitors lit up with an image of the Ood. "You little things that live in the light, clinging to your feeble suns which die in the—"

"That's not the Ood. Something's talking through them," Zach said as Ornias took the comms from Rose.

"I already said that. You're a bit late, though if you could all be smart about this, it would make my job easier."

"How do you mean, Ornias?" The Doctor asked as the Beast rambled on.

"Don't listen to it. It's a demon. It plays on fear and despair. If it can pit you against one another, it will. If it can drive you mad, it will. Any weakness gives it a chance to slip in past your defenses. So, don't give it one."

"This is Captain Zachary Cross Flane of Sanctuary Base Six, representing the Torchwood archive. You will identify yourself."

"You know my name," the Beast replied.

"What do you want?"

"You will die here. All of you. This planet is your grave."

Ornias groaned, tossing up a hand in annoyance. "Idle threats from a demon who isn't even physically up here."

"If you are the Beast," the Doctor started, making Ornias pinch the bridge of his nose and mutter about nosey Time Lords. "Then answer me this. Which one, hm? 'Cause, the universe has been busy since you've been gone. There's more religions than there are planets in the sky. The Archiphets, Orkology, Christianity, Pash Pash, New Judaism, San Klah, Church of the Tin Vagabond. Which devil are you?"

"All of them," the Beast answered proudly, making Ornias let out a short bark of laughter.

"All of them, he says! Oh, I'm going to have fun with him when I find out where he's hiding."

"What, then you're the truth behind the myth?"

"This one knows me as I know him. The killer of his own kind."

"How did you end up on this rock?"

"The Disciples of the Light rose up against me and chained me in the pit for all eternity."

This drew Ornias's attention and he turned the comms on again. "When? When did this happen? Because I never sensed you and I've been around for a long while."

The Beast hesitated for a second. "Before time."

"What does that mean?" The Doctor questioned.

"Before time."

"What does 'before time' mean?"

"Before light and time and space and matter. Before the cataclysm. Before this universe was created."

"That's impossible. No life could have existed back then," the Doctor argued as the Beast mocked him.

"Is that your religion?"

"It's a belief."

"Ornias?" Rose questioned him as he frowned, thinking. "Is he right? Could there be a… a point before time?"

"It depends," Ornias replied, holding up a hand. "Your God, as it were, has abilities that even the dark Lord Satan doesn't understand. Demons know even less. I've been witness to some of those abilities but they bend any rational thinking any human or demon or alien could come up with. If He could create my world, my universe, and watch it all burn after Armageddon, then why couldn't he create another universe with worlds like it? Why couldn't he banish another demon in a universe before its creation?" Ornias lightly tapped the machine next to him, enticing another little spark. "This demon might have been around long enough to lose his mind but nothing about this could be proven wrong. No one understands what He does and why. Even I can only guess."

"You're mad," Jefferson muttered, not understanding anything Ornias was saying and how he could know these things.

"Yes, well, it would make sense if you knew me but we'll save that for later," Ornias replied with a smirk, unnerving Jefferson as the Beast growled through the comms.

"You know nothing. All of you, so small. The Captain, so scared of command. The soldier, haunted by the eyes of his wife. The little girl, running away from home. The scientist, still running from Daddy. The little boy who lied. The virgin. And the lost girl, so far away from home. The valiant child who will die in battle so very soon."

"Doctor, what does that mean?" Rose asked, looking at Ornias as well as he frowned at her.

"Rose, don't listen."

"Ornias, what does it mean?" She pressed but even Ornias wasn't sure.

He may be a demon and he may have the same skills as the Beast and then some, but something he rarely ever did was peek into someone's personal future. It wasn't something he could do all willy-nilly. It took effort and power and time. The Beast had all this time to build that and while it could have chosen any part of Rose's past to meddle with, it chose instead to use that built-up strength to look into her future and frighten her that way. Why? Because she's a bright soul with little darkness? The Beast had nothing to really use against her? No… No, this has to be because of the Doctor. This is the Doctor's weakness, not hers. Ornias began to smirk.

"Oh, he's getting clever," he breathed as the Beast laughed.

"You will die and I will live."

The image of the Ood shifted into that of a horned Beast as he roared and Ornias surged forward as the others shrank back in fear.

"Oh, ho! You cheeky bastard you," Ornias said with a mad grin. "That form… Hell, that form is so basic. A mere mimicry of the Lord himself who never dawned the look in the first place. The humans made it up after seeing nightmares of the demons who haunted them. Ha! Any higher demon would know that! You've just confirmed my suspicions. If that's your true form, then you're nothing but a bug under my boot."

The comms were quiet and Ornias scoffed.

"What? Where's the big scary Beast now, hm? Can't talk to me like the others, can you? Can't look into my head and find out all my secrets, so you're stuck playing nice with me and hoping the humans get upset enough to do what you need them to. Hell, you're almost boring."

"W-Why are you mocking it? You're going to get us killed," Danny hissed, fear making his quiver uneasily.

"Oh, please. You think the Beast is going to just crawl up out of the pit and eat you?" Ornias scoffed. "He said it himself. He's been sealed in the pit for eternity. The pit is open but he hasn't exactly come out of it, has he?"

"Well, no…"

"The worst he can do is possess people with enough darkness for him to use it against them. Your idiotic friend over there having been his first, easy target. The rest of you are just backups, so he hasn't bothered really trying to get under your skin yet until now. Though, rest assured, it would take time for him to be able to worm his way in. That is unless you leave yourself wide open for it by listening to his drivel."

"Ornias, you really need to work on encouraging people," the Doctor chimed over the comms and Ornias rolled his eyes. "Listen, that thing is playing on very basic fears. Darkness, childhood nightmares, all that stuff."

"But that's how the devil works," Danny argued.

"Or a good psychologist."

"Yeah, but how did it know about my father?" Ida pressed as Ornias drawled a response.

"Demons can get into people's heads, see their fear, their mistakes. Think of it as telepathy, if you'd like."

"Okay, but what makes the Beast's version of the truth any better than mine, hm?" The Doctor asked." 'Cause I'll tell you what I can see. Humans. Brilliant humans. Humans who travel all the way across space, flying in a tiny little rocket right into the orbit of a black hole, just for the sake of discovery. That's amazing! Do you hear me? Amazing, all of you. The Captain, his Officer, his elders, his juniors, his friends. All with one advantage. The Beast is alone. We are not. If we can use that to fight against him—"

"Doctor!" Ornias shouted then, eyes bright gold. "Get out of the pod!"

The Doctor barely had a chance to react before the cable snapped and Ornias spat out a curse, grabbing the end and the railing, teeth grit as the cable attempted to jerk him off his feet.

"Go!" Ornias bellowed, straining against it before the Doctor replied.

"We're out!"

Ornias let the cable go and leaned over the railing with a breath of relief as Rose rushed over to him.

"Ornias! Are you alright?"

"Oh. Oh, I am absolutely peachy," he spat a snarl on his face as his hand gripped the railing tight and the metal creaked dangerously. "Because he's finally made a mistake."

"What mistake?"

Ornias turned and allowed his pitch-black wings out, rolling his neck and ignoring the shocked and frightened humans behind him. "He messed with my prey."