"Oh! Those scoundrels!" Catherine seethed as she and Ianto failed in their attempts stopping the Cybermen, as they came to the realization, this was a setup from the start!
Staged, all of it, the Cybermen used the opportunity given to them, by the Doctor, no less, to have everything come together.
They didn't just want to annihilate the Daleks, they wanted to annihilate the Doctor on top of it!
Of course, what better way to kill two birds with one stone, trick the Doctor, destroy the Daleks, destroy the Doctor, take over the world.
It gets worse than that, it'd appear the Daleks either had their misgivings working with the Cybermen from the start or wanted to destroy them and the Doctor at the same time!
That explains a lot of things.
Why the Cybermen wanted the Doctor's help, all three of them, so the Doctor would help destroy the Daleks for them, less work after they kill the Doctor afterwards, and when that's said and done, take over the world without the Doctor stopping them.
Assuming there's anything left of the world, that is.
Never trust the Cybermen, never trust the Daleks!
What idiot thought going to either for help was a good idea?
A bloody idiot!
And, it's apparent, now, the Cybermen knew, or the very least suspected, the organic bomb in the roaming Dalek, probably calculated a reactionary by the Daleks the moment they either suspected or committing treachery.
Likewise, it wouldn't be surprising if the Daleks suspected treachery by the Cybermen from the word 'go' as they're inherently distrustful, that they plotted against the Cybermen, especially once they discovered the Cybermen's plot with the Doctor.
Backstabbing, an all too familiar tactic in the war games, for Daleks, it's their lifeblood, for Cybermen, it's calculations.
With the two scheming behind the other's backs, it's a difficult prospect trying to prevent them from setting off their respected weapons of mass destruction.
A difficult situation, that if anything goes wrong, there's no planet to call home, and billions of lives lost to another war between the alien species.
Frantic as she's attempting to mash buttons, pull levers, anything to get the TARDIS to give them an answer on how to maneuver through this, without risking their lives, Catherine muttered under her breath while Ianto worked to help her, struggling as he avoided bumping into her while his hands glided over the controls.
Foreign, alien, even if there's resemblances to the computers used by Torchwood, Ianto doubted he knew what he was doing, much less Catherine, but she claimed that she used the console more than once, usually because Dav—the Doctor couldn't be half-arsed to use it himself some days, usually when he's tired, bored, any day when he's feeling blasé, really.
That remains to be seen, seeing how she's struggling, and the more Ianto worked with her, the more evident that she's out of her element.
"If he hadn't lost the damn handbook, I'd know what I'm doing!" Catherine decried how David always seemed to lose the makeshift handbook dedicating to explaining the inner workings of the TARDIS.
This outburst caused Ianto to point out, "Would you even know what to do, then?"
For his remark, Catherine gave him a scowl, as she uttered, "Had I become queen, I'd put you in the dungeon for that!"
However, she resigned that this wasn't something she could use, but David's with the Prime, and there's no chance she's going out there for him, not with the roaming Dalek and the deployed Cybermen.
His dark eyes looking at the console controls, Ianto uttered, "How the bloody hell do any of them pilot this junk?"
There's a rumble as Ianto and Catherine felt the TARDIS coming alive, with Catherine yelling at Ianto, "Rule two, don't say that!"
Rule three, don't call the TARDIS a piece of junk, either.
Yes, the TARDIS has feelings and by saying the Doctor pilots it and calling it a junk, never turned out well for anyone, ask Catherine how she knows, oh, she might have choice words with the TARDIS every now again, but the true culprit's David.
He has an awful way of getting the TARDIS into doing what he wants, but in truth, the TARDIS makes the choice itself, David's just a passenger, don't even say he's a co-pilot.
Rule four, you're not the TARDIS's co-pilot.
Grabbing the handrails as everything violently vibrated around him like a disaster movie, complete with his eyes rattling in his head, Ianto struggled as he asks Catherine, "Where's it taking us?"
Running to grab the handrails on the opposite side, Catherine replied with a concerning, "I… I don't know!"
It wasn't like the TARDIS tells them everything, believe her, it's seldom when it wants to give them something tangible.
Gripping the handrails, the two struggled as the TARDIS activated itself, when it finally stopped, and they were sure that they weren't suddenly tossed around, the two released their grips, as their legs trembled.
"Does that happen, often?" Ianto inquired as he attempted to recapture his stoic nature, his legs being difficult as he walked with Catherine towards the door, curious to know where they ended up.
If they wanted to know where they ended up.
Catherine says it's known that when Dav—the Doctor sets off the TARDIS, it has a habit of sending them somewhere dangerous in retaliation.
Don't worry, it's never anything dangerous, else what then?
Just enough to get its point across.
Sticking out their heads, Ianto and Catherine glimpsed at the sight of Theodore and the two men as they're having a heated argument with the Prime, while the other Cybermen pointed their arms at them.
Immediately, Ianto took notice of the deceased Director Harriet, her skin pale as she remained on the ground, the Cybermen not reacting to her death, regarding her nothing more than inconsequential.
Catherine's unnerved, expectedly, as she found the sight grizzly, however, she didn't get to process it when the Cybermen corralled them away from the TARDIS, back to the sides of the three men as they stared at them with their respected looks.
As expected, the three men found out the ulterior motives of the Cybermen wanting the Doctor's help and the Prime refusing to budge on the Doctor "promising" his aid to the Cybermen.
It demanded the Doctor (all three men) to repay the favour, which the three men then balked at this, as they stated that while they might've agreed to help against the Daleks — they're not helping the Cybermen destroy Earth and them in the process.
"You have no other choice!" The Prime's electronic voice echoed as it demanded the Doctor help it destroy the Daleks as promised and be readied for deletion.
Not interested in upgrading the Doctor, either of them, but that said, all three men affirmed they weren't helping the Prime.
The argument came to an end when everyone noticed two heads poking out of the TARDIS, with the Prime swiftly ordering the other Cybermen in capturing Catherine and Ianto, unable to escape as the Cybermen dragged them out of the safety of the TARDIS where it proceeded to shut itself close against the Cybermen.
"Which one of you broke the rules?" David swiftly demanded to know what happened, seeing his beloved TARDIS amid the Cybermen, holding it hostage, and Catherine quickly pointed at Ianto who then shouted back, "What idiot loses the handbook?"
Lowering his voice, in an utter, David sputtered, "Well… you… shut up!"
The two were forced to stand beside the three men as the Prime questioned them, asking about the other machine, which Theodore adamantly wouldn't tell them.
"I thought you figured it out!" David glared at Catherine who then proceeded to jab at him with her thin fingers as she hissed, "I thought you figured it out!"
Their squabbling ended as soon as it started, with a nudge by Pete as his caramel eyes remained fixated on the Cybermen.
They're outnumbered, but still, they're here, and that means they've got their own tricks up their sleeves, and those tricks are going to cost the Cybermen dearly.
Cogs turning in his head as he's trying to come up with an idea, Theodore pulled David and Pete close to him as he telepathically gave them an idea.
"There's this sound, for some ungodly reason, they don't like it, Lee and I haven't found an answer why, but this sound just drives them insane!" Theodore gave the men a breakdown how he came to the idea, the unusual ticking noise that bedeviled and frightened the two species.
Raising his fine brow, Pete responded, "Ticking?"
David added, "Like… a clock?"
Nodding, Theodore affirmed that this ticking noise is their answer, that if they can replicate it, maybe it'll drive the two species into calling a truce if they don't soil themselves beforehand.
Remaining bedeviled himself, Pete asks, "Why would a ticking noise frighten them?"
Lightly shrugging, Theodore tells him that he doesn't know, he and Lila never found out why, it's been one of those things that they never gotten an answer for, believe him, they tried, numerous times.
It's the only thing that Theodore knows that has a chance, they can't risk the Cybermen getting testy and they certainly can't risk the Daleks getting an itchy tendril, either.
"How are we going to do that?" Pete inquired as he silently stared at Theodore, cogs continuing to turn in his head, before Theodore gave his answer.
"Lee? Al?" Theodore called out to them in his mind.