Looming over him with his sunken eyes, tubes stuck out from the back of his head towards the inner chambers of his chassis as liquid flowed back and forth as he rested his arms on the edges.
Skaro, one of the most feared Dalek known to anyone fortunate enough to survive to tell the tale.
"No," Theodore quietly said as he stepped back in shock at the sigh, his footsteps echoing through the grated floor.
His father said he died.
He was sure of it!
Skaro stared into his icy blue eyes with amusement as he responded irately, "You…!"
Lila looked between them as she's watching the scene unfold before her. Theodore looked stunned at the sight of Skaro and Skaro none too happy about the encounter, either.
Almost impossible, Theodore told her that Skaro died in a war between two Dalek factions. His father certain of this, he instigated the war himself, hoping to destroy Skaro's influence over a region of space.
He thought it'd work, after the war, he didn't see any trace of Skaro and believed the Supreme finally died.
One of the most dangerous of Daleks, Skaro lived a long torrid life, he survived many coups against him, and managed to build an empire on a planet. He even named it after himself, just because he survived for so long, he felt it appropriate.
Oh yes, Skaro ruled that planet from sun up to sundown, amazing he kept it around long enough before the war waged between his faction and the opposing forces.
Theodore's father once mentioned that out of all the Daleks he fought against, Skaro's the most competent of them all, and that frightened him more than anything, that he felt relieved when he thought the Dalek died in the war.
"You're dead!" Theodore tried to say as he looked at the Dalek Supreme as he shifted in his spot, looking at Theodore with his sunken eyes.
Skaro replied with, "Dead to some, a blessing to others!"
Even with those raisin eyes, Lila sees the hate fuming from them, as he then asked, "Is he still alive?"
It caught the two off-guard, but Theodore recovered as he wanted elaboration to Skaro's question, but the Dalek Supreme laughed at him, instead.
"Just like I thought," Skaro didn't hesitate throwing shade towards Theodore. "You're nothing like him."
It's enough to cause Theodore to raise his voice as he demanded answers from Skaro, but the Dalek Supreme wasn't at all fazed by his outburst, Lila holding Theodore back.
Behind, the two heard Clay and his men overwhelmed by the Daleks as Theodore shouted at Skaro. Lila couldn't hold him back anymore, as he pulled away to step closer to the Dalek Supreme.
Skaro didn't blink at Theodore's outburst and instead kept calm, it's enough that Lila managed to yank Theodore back towards her to tell him, "I think the jig's up!"
Somehow, Lila didn't think Skaro saw Theodore as his father and instead he's seeing Theodore as is, which due to the state of his clothes not matching his father's, would be suspect to a Dalek Supreme that allegedly died from a war staged by the man.
"It's impossible!" Theodore found it hard to believe Skaro doesn't see him as his father, he has his father's trademark eyes and nose, his smile!
Lila pointed out, "The one time you don't wear those dusty clothes."
Oh, yes, perhaps if he continued to wear his father's clothes, perhaps he had a chance, but Lila reminded him that even then, there' still a chance that Skaro sees through his ruse.
Confirmed as Skaro inquired, "Is that foolish man still alive?"
Gritting his teeth, Theodore replied stiffly, "Why would I tell you?"
Skaro pointed out that his father had to been, else that he wouldn't have produced offspring, and the fact that he didn't mention Theodore's mother, showed that he allegedly died before his father met her.
Deducing that his father aged significantly since their last encounter, Skaro noted that Theodore had to been his son.
"So, what if I am?" Theodore crossed his arms as he stared at Skaro.
Okay, Theodore didn't think it through, but he's running out of options and the more they're stalling Skaro, the more likely Clay and his men dies, and he couldn't have that happen on his watch.
"I know you two are doing your thing, but I gotta know something, how'd you survive the war, didn't the other Daleks use nukes?" Lila decided to move things along, because it's obvious that Skaro saw through Theodore from the get-go and isn't dead, but the problem's the fact Theodore said the opposing faction used nukes.
Unless Skaro fit himself in a fridge, chassis and all, Lila couldn't guess how he survived several nukes dropping on his fortress at once.
Grinning, Skaro's yellowed teeth glistened as the door opened behind the two and the Daleks marched Clay and his men inside the room, they're disheveled, bloodied, covered in burns. Daleks circled around them as Skaro remained in the middle.
"I was saved," Skaro told Lila, his eyes on her as Theodore pushed her behind him as he looked at the Dalek Supreme.
Theodore found that hard to believe on the account that nobody saves Daleks. There's no possible reason for it, ever. It's a joy when a Dalek dies and a celebration when a chunk of them perish in a fruitless war against the Doctor.
He called Skaro out that he's just lying, but Skaro stated verbatim that he was saved. Theodore asked who saved the Dalek Supreme, just so he can track them down afterwards and have a longwinded conversation as to why before probably strangling them.
Skaro wouldn't help anyone much less keep deals, why'd anyone would do such a thing in saving him, Theodore never knows, but he hopes to prevent it in the future, if he can survive the present at this rate.
"Doctor, what are we going to do?" Clay desperately looked towards Theodore with guidance, his blood glistening under the light as he moved his lips. His men battered and bloody, it'll be a miracle they get out in one piece, and the way it's looking they're not getting far.
Skaro began giving orders on turning Clay, his men, and Lila into slaves and for Theodore, well, executed. He demanded that Theodore's death satisfy him and his Daleks agreed in unison.
No weapons, the Sonic Screwdriver couldn't do much, and there's no TARDIS in sight, what a first day this' been!
The Daleks prepared with their eye stocks pointed at the group. The group unable to do anything and Theodore doesn't know what to do, until he gotten his answer, in a way he didn't know how.
Alarms started going off around the room and the Daleks confused with Skaro bewildered. He demanded the Daleks find the cause and they did, there's an flotilla inbound to the planet, and they recognized it.
Skaro's eyes widened as he's told this and Theodore called out to him, wanting to know.
Looking towards him, Theodore can feel Skaro's eyes on him, before he hesitatingly mustered, "If not you…"
Overhead, the entire room went quiet, as there's movement above the ceiling, something heavy, the ceiling groaning.
Behind Skaro, the large screen turned on by itself as another Dalek sat in front of the screen, looking at Skaro.
"Skaaaaaaarrrrrooooo," croaked the Dalek.
Skaro immediately turned around to see the Dalek and uttered, "How?!"
He heard that the Dalek survived because Skaro's attempt at destroying it failed. It survived and with the influence it held, garnered a massive following.
Following the trail of destruction left by Skaro and his Daleks, the Dalek found his holdout, Earth, seeking his end and replacing him as the Supreme.
Lila leaned forward and asked Theodore about the Dalek, but he didn't know the name of this one. His father never learnt it, didn't seem to think so, since he thought every Dalek exploded on Skaro's planet.
Skaro screeched, "You cannot exterminate me!"
To which, the Dalek replied as there's movement coming from the massive door, "Yes, you're alre-ady exter-min-ated!"
The door blowing open as the opposing Daleks moved in and started shooting at Skaro and his Daleks.
Immediately, Clay and his men dropped to the ground while Theodore grabbed Lila and shielded her from the firefight happening around them.
The Dalek replied with a thunderous triumph, "I am the Supreme, now!"
Skaro retreated into the safety of the chassis as his Daleks fought against the attacking Daleks while the others hunkered to the ground, unable to do anything.
Giving orders, Skaro attempted to destroy the opposing Daleks in his reach, overhead the Dalek on the screen commanded its forces.
Firefight overhead, Lila felt her chest pressing flat against the ground as Theodore shielded them from it, screeching Daleks from all corners as Skaro commanded his slaves to aide him.
They're downed by the opposing Daleks.
The room filled with smoke from the blasting, Theodore and the others coughed heavily as they're trying their best to avoid the warring Daleks.
Opening her eyes, Lila noticed there's… eyes… glowing… eyes… looking up at her in the darkness underneath.
She didn't know what those belong to, she didn't want to think about it, after all there's Daleks fighting amongst themselves, and there's more pressing matters.
Just those glowing eyes alone's enough for Lila to feel that they're telling her something, she doesn't understand it, but it's something, and her own eyes moved towards her chest where she spotted what looked like a bolt in the grate that looked like the other bolts.
Only a bolt, but she felt the urge to grab it and twist it. It's large like a knob, not as smooth, she's able to turn it with her hand, and felt the weight of the grated floor underneath her recede.
The way the floor's structured and where they're on the ground, her and the others were in a circle.
Normally, people would've stopped at that point, but Lila couldn't stop herself and she's forced to do it until the bolt came out and the ground collapsed underneath.
Falling in the darkness, below, Lila briefly sees those glowing eyes disappearing, for a moment she saw an outline of a man.
The drop's steep, but everyone came out of it alive for the most part, bruised, shaken up, but alive.
Everyone's confused, as they're shakily standing up with Theodore helping Lila up from the ground.
"What happened?" Clay's voice rattled with fear as he glimpsed around the darkness.
Lila tried to tell them what she did, but for some reason, there's a feeling that she couldn't. Something oppressing her ability to talk about it and it only went away when she finally stopped trying.
"Whatever the case may be, we're down here and they're up there," Theodore coughed as he ran a hand through his messy hair, the stress made it puff up like his father's.
Hastily, they searched for an exit and found it with relative ease before following the tunnel until reaching the end of a large pipe with the outside air blasting against them.
Outside there's Dalek ships in the air and flying Daleks chasing after one another.
Finding a ladder, Theodore went down first and helped everyone else reach the bottom, when they did, they're greeted by another Dalek patiently waiting for them.
It's the same one from the screen.
On edge, Theodore placed himself in front of the others as he felt his two hearts beating against each other as the large Dalek looked at him with its eye stock.
"Who are you?" Theodore mustered his strength.
The Dalek replied, "Davros!"
Theodore's father didn't mention him and without any knowledge of the Dalek, Theodore has nothing.
Clay spoke up as he demanded what Davros wanted, it won and it agreed, but said there's more to it than meets the eye.
It doesn't want Earth.
No reason for it, honestly.
It only came to come after Skaro, payback, if it you will.
"He tried to kill me," Davros gave his reason behind it.
Well, it's understandable why the Dalek wanted revenge against Skaro, but that aside, Dalek all the same.
How it found Skaro, shockingly, it found a huge concentration of plutonium that pointed in the general direction of the former Dalek Supreme.
That's not something Lila and Theodore expected, but here they are.
"What now?" Theodore yanked on his collar.
They don't have any weapons, they certainly could try to gang up on the Dalek, but effectively, they're in a tricky situation.
Everyone jumped back as Davros' top half of the chassis opened, revealing a similar being like Skaro, heavy facial scars running along his face, and one of his eyes replaced with a cybernetic monocle.
"He said you'd come on this day. I must admit I didn't believe him, until you showed up on time," Davros told Theodore as he settled in his spot as he looked at Theodore with bemusement. "Much more impressive, it is. You truly are, the Doctor. "
In little words, Davros tells Theodore that because he came at the right place and right time, it gave Davros an opening to attack Skaro and his faction. As it stands, Skaro won't survive the incursion, Davros made sure of it, by exploding the compound behind, killing everything including his own remaining Daleks.
Never said Daleks carried compassion for their own, death came with the job, and some considered it an honour to die in such acts.
Theodore caught the Dalek mentioning someone explicitly told Davros when and where Theodore showed up.
That knowledge should've meant Davros wanted him dead, but it'd seem the Dalek didn't want to do it, rather he's keen on keeping Theodore alive.
That's strange and while it's nice Theodore isn't going to die horribly, the fact the Dalek's sparring him isn't helping him any, and he wanted to know who said he'll be here.
Davros wouldn't tell him.
"I've got what I wanted; I don't see much reason to keep you. I've got better things to do than deal with than an uneducated fool," Davros couldn't help but dig at the confused man as he's trying to find out who told the Dalek.
The chassis came down and Davros shot up in the skies above, as he went to claim victory over the demise of Skaro and his faction.
Taking no time, Theodore led the others to safety amid the war, when they hunkered down, it only took four hours before they stuck their heads up and sees the Daleks gone.
Slaves dead, ships destroyed, like Davros said, he didn't want Earth. He just wanted to kill Skaro. The Doctor can wait another time, but revenge's what he wanted most of all.
Well, that's one-way Theodore didn't expect it to happen, but that's one for his book, and surely his father would've approved of it.
Still, the question remained… who told Davros that Theodore would've been in this area at the time where he's captured by Skaro, and then some.
It's baffling and Theodore's aware Daleks wouldn't work with the Doctor to save their own metal arse. That much's clear and he didn't know what to think of it, but that's for another time, as it's time for him and Lila to head home.
He just wanted to go home, shower, and try to avoid any police boxes.
Oh.
Fine, he'll go home, shower, and talk to his father.
This should go well!
Clay thanked Theodore and Lila for the help, for what it's worth, and he saw them off as they're trying to find their way back to the TARDIS amid the newly destroyed landscape.
Lila wondered if they'll have to dig it out, but Theodore felt that it didn't hound him and back just for the Daleks' wars to destroy it. Knowing it, Theodore said it's just waiting somewhere else for them, and when Lila asked if it's possible the TARDIS left them stranded, Theodore tried to keep his optimism.
Going through the rubbled ground, Theodore rubbed his eyes and as he lowered his hand, he spotted the waiting TARDIS.
"There you are!" Theodore shouts, his Scottish showing.
He marched over to the TARDIS with Lila following behind as he began shouting at it.
"I don't know what's gotten into you, but I don't find your brand of humour anymore funny than my father. Now, see here, I'm not my father, I can't possibly be the Doctor!" Theodore tells it.
Lila jabbed him in the back as she hissed in his ears.
"Hey, Kirk, we need to get home. Don't piss off the Enterprise!" Lila gritted her teeth as she reminded him that he couldn't shout at the TARDIS until they're safe and soundly in their universe.
Remembering that, Theodore recanted his words as he then asked, "I done what I set out to do, are we allowed back?"
The door opened on its own and Theodore marched inside with Lila closely behind with the door closing and the TARDIS springing to life.
When it materialized, the door opened, and the two stepped out in Lila's flat.
"They make it seem so easy," Lila hoarsely coughed as she recalled all those science fiction shows and novels that had similar scenarios. The way they're all structured, it seemed like it's so easy when the heroes escape danger, and they're paid to risk their lives.
No so much for her and Theodore.
"Okay, we're back, am I going to have to sleep with one eye open?" Lila asked Theodore as he ended up plopping down on her chair.
His back pressed against the soft blue chair back, Theodore told her that she'll be fine, the TARDIS wanted him, and it didn't mean for her to end up stuck with him.
While Lila would've loved to chew out a machine for dragging her into this mess, she didn't want to risk angering it. Already it showed no hesitation in kidnapping them, lord knows what it'll do if she pushed one too many buttons.
Lila made herself coffee and some tea for Theodore while they're trying to readjust to their mundane universe.
"Those things aren't here, are they?" Lila looked towards Theodore as he took massive gulps from the mug.
Setting it down on the coaster, Theodore shook his head as he replied that Daleks aren't in their universe.
Chewing on her lip, Lila asked, "Who do you think told Davros?"
There's no way someone knew Theodore would've unwillingly arrived at that spot at that hour. Much less, knew Theodore's coming.
Thinking on that, Theodore shook his head as he admitted he didn't have any answer.
Lila heard her mobile going off and she went to retrieve it from the charger, when she came back, she held a solemn look on her face.
Theodore asked her what's wrong and she hesitantly told him, "Theo… I'm so sorry…"
Telling him as she walked towards a box of tissues, Lila informed Theodore that his father died in his sleep. That was Odette who called. She couldn't reach Theodore with telepathy and been trying for hours, now.
Hearing this made Theodore stand from the chair as he felt the shock come over him, forcing him to sit down against his will, wind knocked out of him, he tried to ask, "When?!"
Looking at her mobile, Lila replied that he died almost three hours ago.
They've been in that universe for three hours in theirs, it's impossible to Lila, but that's not important now.
She comforted Theodore as his emotions are trying to get through that narrow doorway as he couldn't help but weep.
THE END