He who takes a beating
More than once can last forever
And we can stand this rain
But everlasting stormy weather
Alex Lloyd – Stand Down
I stand again waiting for the next blow to land, Jack beside me struggles to gain his footing from the last blow. Bound and unable to fight back we stand our ground, remaining between them and Rose, the tiny cell blocked easily by two male bodies. They do not know what stands before them. I will do what I must to keep her from them even as the latest blow lands, once again sending me to the ground, Rose crying out in protest. She begs us to stop, let them take her for our own sakes. But we know what she does not and will not let her have that fate. I watch Jack crumple before unconsciousness takes him. I now am the only thing protecting her from them and I stand again. I close my eyes feeling the passage of time around me, worlds rising and falling, taking a deep breath I control the falling sands. Feeling the storm within rising, mind clearing in the face of its destruction. All that matters in the eye of the storm is her, her face that guides the calm, as all around the storm rages. I feel the bindings fall from my wrists as they alone begin to rot, decay under the passage of time. I see the next blow slow before me and step aside, letting the Talisadian stumble before striking it on the weak flesh of its neck. The tormentor falls beside Jack, the only difference being Jack will live. The other Talisadian attacks and I bring about the same fate, watching it drop before me. All are on the ground before Rose can blink and I am grateful she could not see what I had done to save her. I look her in the eye as I stand still now across from her, time returning to its usual pace. The shock on her face as she sees them, the relief when she sees me, the tears in her eyes for Jack. Between us we lift him from the ground, running as well as we can back to the TARDIS. I will not tell her what I did, I will not let her have that on her conscience. I did what I did for me, because I could not let that happen to the one thing I have left. The one thing more important than my own life.