Remnant Who
By ReaderWarrior
I do not own Doctor Who or RWBY.
The End of the World (A)
Beta'd by: -
As always, please comment! It honestly makes my day to read your thoughts and opinions.
Tell your friends!
Dead (named) characters:
Clive
Fantastics:
1
"... Are you going to start it?" Weiss asks, turning her head to the Librarian who still held the remote at the ready.
"Huh?" The Librarian says, shaking his head for a moment. "Sorry. Must have dozed off for a second there."
Ruby giggles, "it's like you froze mid-sentence."
The red-hooded girl's sister nods. "Yeah," Yang agrees. "C'mon! It feels like we've been waiting for months to continue this! Let's go!"
"Oh… Sorry about that everyone." He declares. "I didn't mean to leave you all hanging." The Librarian smiles and lifts the remote once more and presses the start button.
"Hobey-ho!" The group declares.
"For real, this time," Blake adds with a nod. "What's this 'episode' called?"
The Librarian checks his watch then smirks. "The End of the World."
Everyone's eyes go wide at that revelation.
"I hope the Doctor can stop it," Ruby shudders, her teammates nodding in agreement.
The Librarian smiles and pats the girls head, "let's find out."
The screen opens with Rose running inside the T.A.R.D.I.S, where the Doctor stood behind the center console. The door swings shut behind her.
"Right, Rose Tyler, you tell me. Where do you want to go?" The Doctor asks, tossing a small orb between his hands. "Backwards or forwards in time? It's your choice, what's it going to be?"
"Oh, please go forwards!" Ruby giggles.
Weiss shakes her head, "I think they should go backwards, it'll be safer if she knows what she's getting into."
"Aw," Yang pouts, "but where's the fun in that?"
The blonde thinks on this for a moment before answering, "forwards."
"Yay!"
Placing down the orb, the Doctor then proceeds to press a few buttons on the center console.
"How far?" He asks.
Blake turns to the Librarian. "How far can it go?"
"Conceivably, any when. However far you want it," he answers. This earns another 'whoa' from the group.
Rose thinks about this for another moment. "A hundred years."
The Doctor spins a small wheel for a brief second before flipping a switch and twisting a knob. Instantly, the time rotor begins to pulse and the room shakes. Both the Doctor and his companion grab ahold of the console as it rumbles for a few moments. The Doctor then turns another dial and smiles.
"There you go!" He exclaims with a point. "Step outside those doors and it's the 22nd century."
Ruby smiles widely at this revelation. "That's so cool!" She then turns to the Librarian, "can we go to the future?"
"Mine or yours?" He asks.
"Yours," Blake interjects. "There's no good to come from us knowing our future."
Weiss nods, "I agree."
Says the two girls most likely to rewrite their past, the Librarian thinks
"You're kidding," Rose gasps.
The Doctor shakes his head, "it's a bit boring, though." He leans in towards the blonde and asks, "do you want to go further?"
Rose smiles and giggles. "Fine by me."
The Doctor repeats the process of spinning wheels, flipping switches, and twisting knobs, albeit for a long time as if to represent the length of time they were flying past. The T.A.R.D.I.S rumbles once more until the Doctor flips the same dial.
"Ten thousand years into the future," he declares.
Each member of RWBY gulps at this fact.
"Woah," Yang gasps, speechless.
Blake nods and pats her teammate on the arm without looking away from the screen, "I know."
"Step outside, and it's the year 12,005. The new Roman Empire."
Rose smirks and shakes her head, "you think you're so impressive."
The Doctor's feigns pain. "I am so impressive!" He exclaims.
"You wish!" Rose laughed jokingly.
"Right then," the Doctor declared, "you asked for it. I know exactly where to go." He points at the blonde, earning another laugh before pressing his hand on the wheel embedded in the console.
Spinning it longer than before, and at a much faster pace, the Doctor tells Rose to "hang on!" as he flips more switches and turns more knobs. The rumbling grows louder as the Doctor begins pushing a pump in and out repeatedly.
An outside view shows the T.A.R.D.I.S spinning and twirling in a reddish-orange void.
"What's that?" Weiss asks.
"The time vortex," the Librarian exclaims. "It's kind of like… a highway. The T.A.R.D.I.S flies through it to travel through time, and by extension, space."
The heiress places a hand on her chin, "interesting."
The Doctor pulls a few more levers before hitting a small bell, causing the rumbling to subside.
A moment passes before Rose asks, "where are we?"
The Doctor waves his hands towards the doors, causing the companion to look behind her.
"What's out there?" she asks, turning back around to face the Doctor. He only waves his hand towards the door, earning a sigh from Rose. She then slowly walks towards the door and outside to a brightly lit room.
Sand-colored stone lined the floors, walls, and ceiling. Bright lights and vents decorated the walls, with soft machine-like humming heard from all around.
"Where is this?" Weiss asks.
Ruby giggles and pokes at her friend, "don't you mean when?"
The white-haired huntress rolls her eyes. "Fine, when is this?" she corrects herself.
"I'm sure we'll find out soon," Blake answers.
As Rose looks around, the Doctor steps out of the blue box. Closing the doors behind him, he walks over to a passageway and pulls out his sonic screwdriver. The Doctor fiddles with the control panel, eliciting a few beeps, before turning back around and walking up to Rose.
One of the walls begins to slide away, revealing a large see-through panel showing Earth from space.
"Whoa!" Yang exclaims.
"It's… beautiful," Blake adds.
The Librarian nods, "yes. She is."
Turning to the Librarian, Ruby asks, "does Remnant look like that?"
"A bit. There are some differences. Land mass, pollution, and other things affect how a planet looks from space. But for the most part, yes."
"That's… amazing," Weiss gasps.
"You lot," the Doctor begins, "you spend all your time thinking about dying. How you're gonna get killed by eggs or beef, or global warming, or asteroids… But you never take the time to imagine the impossible. That maybe you survived." He takes a moment to study the small blue orb in front of them.
"This is the year 5.5/Apple/26," the Doctor answers. "Five billion years into the future."
The mouths of everyone, even including the Librarian to a point, drop to the floor.
"Whaaaat!?" the four girls exclaimed.
The Librarian chuckles with a panicked look in his eye. "That's… quite a bit, even for me."
"You think?!" Yang yells.
"And this is the day," the Doctor begins, pausing to take a brief glimpse at his watch, "hold on…"
Outside, the sun warps then explodes in brilliant yellow light.
"This is the day the sun expands." He turns to Rose, who looks back at him with worry in her eyes. "Welcome to the end of the world."
"What does he mean by that?" Weiss asks, her voice shaking slightly.
The Librarian's face darkens before answering. "Everything dies. Even stars and planets. Some point in the far-off future, long after you're dead, the sun will explode in a supernova, then implode into a black hole."
Blake gasps and her bow shakes, "r-r-really?"
"Yes… I'm sorry, but there's no stopping it."
Ruby wipes away a few tears, "all those people… everyone will die?"
"If there is anyone on the planet, yes," came the Librarians soft reply.
"Shuttles five and six are now docking," an automated voice declares. "Guests are reminded that Platform One forbids the use of weapons, teleportation, and religion."
The religion comment earns a small chuckle within the group.
"Wait," Blake interrupts. "If they're above Earth, where are they?"
"It's like Atlas, right?" Weiss answers.
The Librarian nods, "that's probably the best way to explain it. Man, I keep forgetting how… unadvanced you Remnantees are in some aspects."
Yang rolls her eyes, "says the man with a time machine."
"Hey!" he exclaims, laughing. "Time and space."
"It's relative," Blake smiles.
Ruby giggles, "in space!"
"Earth death is scheduled for 15:39, follows by drinks in the Manchester suite."
Rose, led by the Doctor, quickly head down a hallway. "So, when it says 'guests', does that mean people?"
"Depends what you mean by 'people'," was the Doctor's quick answer.
"I mean people," Rose clarifies. "What do you mean?"
The Doctor turns down a corridor and responds, "aliens."
"Hopefully some good ones, this time," Blake says.
The girl from the past stays at his side, even as he leads them through the maze of hallways. "What are they doing on board this spaceship?" Rose asks, "what's it all for?"
Pulling out his sonic, the Doctor walks over to another panel. "It's not really a spaceship, more like an observation deck." He activates the device and the Sonic's blue light washes over the controls. "The great and the good are gathering to watch the planet burn."
"What for?" Rose asks.
The door slides open and the alien pockets his sonic. "Fun!"
Stepping inside, the Doctor and Rose enter an empty room with glass windows in almost every direction. In front of them shows Earth as the sun slowly creeps up on it, while above displays a large metallic machine.
"Mind you," the Doctor clarifies, "when I say 'the good and the great', what I mean is the rich."
"Hey Weiss," Yang jokes, "think your dad can score us a couple of tickets?"
Sighing, the heiress frowns, "it's possible he might."
"But… hold on," Rose interrupts, clearly confused. "They did this once on Newsround Extra, the sun expanding. That takes hundreds of years."
Blake frowns, "does she still not believe him?"
"It's probably still some form of shock," the Librarian rationalizes. "Some people just have a harder time coming to terms with huge revelations."
"But still… It seems kind of ridiculous."
Next to her, Yang laughs. "Yesterday, would you have believed a strange man telling you time travel was real?"
Blake sighs, "maybe… I guess not."
"Millions," the Doctor corrects. He, along with Rose, walk up towards the main window and stare out into space. "But the planet's now the property of the National Trust. They've been keeping it preserved." He then points out the window, to a couple of grey, metallic dots surrounding the slowly-expanding star. "See down there? Gravity satellites holding back the sun."
"The planet looks the same as ever," Rose realizes. "I thought the continents shifted and things."
The Doctor nods, "they did. And the Trust shifted 'em back! That's a classic Earth. But now… money's run out, nature takes over."
"How long's it got?" Rose asks.
Checking his watch, the Doctor answers, "about half an hour. Then the planet gets roasted."
"Half of an hour before the end of the world," the Librarian mumbles.
Blake closes her eyes, "I still cannot believe this happens. It's like nothing we do matters."
"Not the Grimm… not anything," Ruby mumbles.
"Hey," the Librarian says sternly, "I never said that. Everything matters. Everyone matters. No matter when or where."
"Is that why you're here?" Rose asks. "I mean, is that what you do? Jump in at the last minute and save the Earth?"
The Doctor turns to Rose, completely serious. "I'm not saving it. Time's up."
"And why not?" Weiss asks.
"Because all things die, Weiss," Blake answers. "And you shouldn't stop that."
"But what about all the people?!"
"It's empty," the Doctor explains. "They've all gone, all left."
The duo look back outside, Rose pauses to grasp the weight of that comment. "Just me then," she whispers.
"Who the hell are you?!" A voice exclaims, causing the Doctor and Rose to quickly turn around. A man with a blue face and tan robes walks up to them. "How did you get in? This is a maximum hospitality zone, the guests have just disembarked! They're on their way any second-"
The Doctor shuffles through his coat pocket, interrupting the alien man. "No, that's me! I'm a guest." He pulls out a wallet and holds it up to the blue creature. "Look, I've got an invitation."
Yang's eyes squint as she looks at the screen, "um, is that blank?"
Ruby nods, "yeah, what's with that?"
"Give it a sec," the Librarian responds.
"Look, there, you see? I'm fine, see?" He folds the wallet in half. "The Doctor plus one. I'm the Doctor, this is Rose Tyler." He points to the blonde next to him and explains, "she's my 'plus one'. Is that all right?"
The alien pauses, "well… obviously. Apologies, et cetera." The Doctor nods, accepting the apology. "If you're on board, we'd better start… Enjoy."
The Doctor smiles as the blue man turns away and walks off. He then holds his wallet out to Rose. "The paper's slightly psychic," he explains. "It shows them whatever I want them to see. Saves a lot of time."
"Now that is cool," Yang smirks. "I could get into any bar I want!"
"Do you have some paper like that?" Ruby asks with a wild grin. 'And can I have some', is what she seemed to imply.
The Librarian gives a slow nod. "Yes… but I prefer creating credentials beforehand with ELI." He then leans over to the red-hooded girl. "I'll give you some later when nobody's looking," the Librarian whispers.
Ruby gives a silent, evil giggle. "Yay!"
Rose looks back and forth between the two aliens in the room. "He's blue," she declares.
"Yeah!" The Doctor answers.
"Okay."
The blue alien steps onto a podium and a spotlight appears around him. "We have in attendance, the Doctor and Rose Tyler!" The former gives a small wave and earns a nod from the announcer. "Thank you."
Clapping his hands, the alien declares, "all staff, to their stations!"
Seemingly coming out of nowhere, many more blue aliens in black clothes and helmets begin scurrying about. A few line the walls while others step through the doorway.
"I can't wait to see more aliens!" Ruby squeals."
Weiss nods, "yes, I wonder what they'll look like."
"Hurry now!" The head blue alien exclaims. "Thank you! Quick as we can. Come along, come along!" As the last of the shorter 'minions' sets into their spots, the alien begins to announce the other dignitaries.
"And now, might I introduce the next honored guest. Representing the Forest of Cheem, we have trees." Rose's eyebrows scrunch in confusion for a moment. "Namely Jabe, Lute, and Coffa."
Glass doors slide open to reveal four humanoid trees. The lead Cheemian, a femalen in a dress, is closely followed by two malens in black armor. Their skin is brown like tree bark and their 'hair' looks like branches.
"Huh," Yang says, her eyebrows arched upwards in surprise, "they really are trees."
"There will be an exchange of gifts, representing peace," the announcer states. He waves his hand in a circular motion, asking, "if you could keep the room circulating. Thank you."
"Next, from the solicitors Jolco and Jolco, we have the Moxx of Balhoon." Next, a small, large blue creature sitting on a moving platform. The Doctor smiles at the creature's entrance, while Rose continues to be surprised by each new alien species.
"What's so special about Moxx?" Weiss asks.
"He's rich," came the Librarian's hushed reply.
"Oh."
"And next," the blue alien continues, "from Financial Family Seven, we have the Adherents of the Repeated Meme." Five dark robed figures step into the room, their faces and bodies hidden under the black garments.
Blake shivers as the hooded people step through the gate. "They don't feel right."
Appearing next, are two reptilian creatures with a humanoid form in lather and fur clothes. "The inventors of hyposlip travel systems, the brothers Hop Pyleen! Thank you." The left brother holds a small box in his hands.
Ruby frowns and turns to the Librarian, "what's 'hyposlip'?"
"I think," he scratches his chin in though, "it's an engine that helps ships go fast."
"Faster than me?" Ruby asks.
The Librarian chuckles and pats the girl's head. "You're fast, but the hyposlip is lightspeed. Sorry."
Ruby pouts a bit, but is still amazed by the technology.
More and more guests arrive through the doors, every new species causing Rose's eyes to grow larger and larger. Each species remains vaguely human-esqe, but with very different mutations.
The first guests, the Cheemians, walk up to the Doctor and his companion. The female tree takes a small cup from her entourage and hands it to the travelers.
"The gift of peace. I bring you a cutting of my grandfather," she explains.
"Her grandfather?!" Weiss exclaims. "That's a bit grotesque."
Yang, although her face does look a bit green, smirks softly. "I guess a gift like that would leaf a good impression." Blake gives a swift chop to the blonde's head earning a quick apology.
"Thank you," the Doctor says, passing the gift to Rose before patting his pockets. "Yes, gifts… um…" He looks up at the trees, "I give you in return, air from my lungs. He blows softly on Jabe, who seems to blush through her bark.
"That's… a strange gift," Ruby says.
The Librarian shrugs, "hey, it's the future. Also, they are trees.
"So?" Blake frowns and glares at the man. "Than seems a bit stereotypical to say."
"It's a statement of fact," the Librarian explains defensively. "Photosynthesis."
"... Fine," the cat-Faunus responds.
"How… intimate," Jabe responds.
The Doctor smiles, "there's more where that came from.
"I bet there is…" Jabe, as well as her guards, step aside to 'keep the room circulating'.
The blue steward interrupts once again, "the sponsor of the main event. Please welcome the Face of Boe."
A large glass case slides inside, pushed by a couple of the blue gremlins. Inside was a large head and not much else. The head had a few tentacle-like appendages sticking out of its head like hair. Aged wrinkles coated the alien's face and it's large eyes squinted as it looked around.
"I know we keep saying this," Yang interrupts, "but woah."
"What's the Face of Boe?" Blake asks.
The Librarian shakes his head, "I don't really know, exactly. And what little I do know is a spoiler."
Ruby pouts a little and the man's answer. "Aww, can't you just tell us now?"
"No."
"The Moxx of Balhoon," the Doctor greets as the blue-sitting alien floats over to him and Rose.
Balhoon pauses in front of the duo. "My felicitations on this historical happenstance." The Doctor leans down to accept the alien's gift. "I give you the gift of bodily saliva."
Much to Rose's dismay and shock, Balhoon spits directly onto her face ("Ew!" Cried out RWBY). The blonde wipes at her face with disgust as the little alien floats to the side. Next to her, the Doctor seems to chuckle.
He quickly turns back and greets the next set of guests. "Ah! The Adherents of the Repeated Meme! I give you air from my lungs." He then drops his jaw and exhales strongly for a few seconds.
The head Adherent holds up a small metallic ball in a large, metallic-gloved hand.
"A gift of peace," it presents, "in all good faith."
Weiss turns to Blake, acknowledging her initial remark about the hooded figures. "I'll admit, they do seem a bit spine-chilling."
The Doctor takes the metal ball and tosses it into the air, testing its weight. He then turns to Rose and gives it to her.
"And last but not least," the steward announces for the last time, "our very special guest. Ladies and gentlemen, and trees and multiforms, consider the Earth below. In memory of this dying world, we call forth the last Human."
Turning to his companion, the Doctor watches Rose's expression and curiosity for the final guest.
"The Lady Cassandra O'Brien Dot Delta Seventeen." The doors slide open and reveal a thin, sheet-like creature stretched on a rectangular frame. The 'sheet' holds a set of eyes and a mouth, with only vein-like lines to decorate the rest. Behind it-her- are two white-robed hospitititans carrying a large container with a spray attachment.
"What,-" Blake starts.
Weiss' jaw drops "Is,-"
"That,-" Yang exclaims
"Thing?!" Ruby yells in slight terror.
"Oh, now, don't stare," Cassandra comments, as if hearing RWBY's shocking cries. "I know, I know it's shocking, isn't it? I've had my chin completely taken away and look at the difference."
"That's not all you've had taken away!" Weiss cries.
Ruby places a hand on her stomach and her cheeks bloat slightly. "I think I'm going to be sick.
The Librarian quickly grabs an empty popcorn bucket from one of the vendors and holds it out to the girl.
The Doctor gives a big laugh at the 'human's' joke while Rose's eyes are frozen wide and her jaw completely slack.
"Look how thin I am. Thin and dainty. I don't look a day over two thousand. Moisturize me. Moisturize me." Cassandra's followers hold up their sprayers and moisturize the her. "Truly, I am the last human," she declares.
Rose begins walking towards Cassandra, stepping behind her and inspecting the 'woman' as she continues her speech.
"She's completely flat!" Blake exclaims as Ruby eagerly takes the bucket.
"My father was a Texan, (the Librarian gives a small 'whoop') my mother was from the Arctic Desert. They were born on the Earth and were the last to be buried in its soil." She sniffles lightly. "I have come to honor them and say goodbye." One of her attendants pulls out a handkerchief and pats her eyes. "Oh, no tears, no tears. I'm sorry. But behold, I bring gifts."
Behind her, the door opens again and out walks another of the blue minions holding a yellowish-round object. "From Earth itself, the last remaining ostrich egg. Legend says it had a wingspan of fifty feet and blew fire from its nostrils. Or was that my third husband?" This earns a loud chuckle from everyone in the room, minus Rose who stands next to Cassandra with shock still apparent on her face.
The Librarian and RWBY laugh as well.
"Unless ostriches are different on Earth," Blake starts, "I think she might be lying."
Yang cracks her knuckles. "A fire-breathing ostrich would be a cool pet."
Pushing her hands down, the Librarian shakes his head. "Sorry, but she's wrong. I think some facts were lost in time."
"Aww."
"Oh, no. Oh, don't laugh. I'll get laughter lines. And here, another rarity." Once again, the doors open and two of the creatures pull out a large rectangular box with a curved top. Lights decorate the side and a large glass window displays the inside. Along its 'chest' are many different buttons and displays.
Rose doesn't notice, but the Doctor watches her from where he stands, and his usual jovial expression has disappeared.
"According to the archives, this was called an iPod. It stores classical music from humanity's greatest composers," Cassandra explains
The Librarian sighs, "actually, it's called a jukebox. iPod are something completely different."
"Then what's an iPod?" Ruby asks, desperate to think about anything other than Cassandra.
"It's sort of like your scrolls," he explains.
"Play on!" The sheet declares. One of the minions presses a button and the record picked slides into place. After a few techno-sounding beeps, the music begins. The Doctor, smiling once again, dances slightly and nods his head to the rhythm.
Yang begins nodding with the Doctor, "nice beat, what's it called?"
"Tainted Love," the Librarian answers. "By… Shoot. My dad would laugh if he knew I couldn't remember this."
"Soft Cell," ELI answers from nowhere.
"Soft CELL," the Librarian repeats. "Thanks!"
Around the room, the aliens begin moving again. Gifts and greetings are exchanged between species.
"Refreshments will now be served," the Steward announces. "Earth Death in thirty minutes."
As the music begins to sing, Rose begins to hyperventilate. Her gaze quickly going back and forth between all the different species.
'Sometimes I feel I've got to,' the drum beats epically, 'run away.'
The noise in the room grows louder as the different aliens begin talking.
'I've got to,' the drum beats again (and the Librarian bangs his head in sync), 'get away from the pain.'
Rose's head snaps left and right as she watches the different aliens talking amongst themselves.
"What's going on?" Weiss asks.
Surprisingly, Blake answers. "Culture shock. She's scared because she doesn't know what to think or do in this new environment." Her voice then drops slightly, "the same thing happened to me when I first left Menagerie."
Yang gives a small hug to her Faunus teammate in comfort. "I'm sorry."
'That you drive into the heart of me. The love we share seems to go nowhere and I've lost my light.'
Finally not being able to take it anymore, Rose runs out the door. The Doctor, noticing the blonde's panic, steps forward to run after her.
'For I toss and turn I can't sleep at night.'
Before the Doctor could continue he was stopped by Jabe, the tree femalen.
"Doctor?" She asks, holding up a device. A brief flash explodes from the device, like a camera, and Jabe gives her thanks. The Doctor then resumes his chase after Rose.
"Did she just… take his picture?" Ruby asks.
Weiss nods, "it's probably so she can keep track of who was at the party."
"Or maybe she just wanted a keepsake," Yang suggests.
Behind Jabe, the Adherent holds up another orb to the steward. "A gift of peace, in all good faith."
"No, you're very kind," the steward refuses, "but I'm just the steward."
"A gift of peace, in all good faith," it repeats.
"Oh, yes. Thank you." The steward takes the gift gingerly. "Of course."
"That's nice of them," Blake says. "Not many guests offer the help gifts."
Weiss stiffens at this comment, immediately putting a mental reminder to start bringing more gifts in social gatherings.
Jabe looks down at her device. "Identify species," she says.
"Oh!" Ruby exclaims, "it's a scanner!"
"That feels like a breach of personal space," Blake frowns.
The device gives a small chirp and whirls.
"Now, stop it," she whispers to the handheld. "Identify his race. Where's he from?!"
The device stops chirping, instead it twitters for a moment. Jabe's eyes go wide and she slowly drops the device to her side.
"That's impossible."
"What is it!?" Yang yells, "where's he from?"
"Spoilers," the Librarian says.
The blonde grumbles, "you and your spoilers."
Behind her, one of the metallic, ball-gifts unfolds. A small spider-like robot steps out and nimby walks away.
"That doesn't look good," Weiss mumbles.
"I hope it doesn't do anything dangerous," Ruby adds.
Rose peers through a window and watches as the sun expands ever closer to the planet. As she does, a blue woman similar to the steward's race walks around the corner. Her garments consisted of overalls and a cap. She holds a thick, rectangular box made of metal, which she keeps close to her chest.
Startled by the footsteps, Rose quickly turns around. "Sorry, am I allowed to be in here?"
The alien glances behind her before responding. "You have to give us permission to talk."
Blakes' body stiffens at the comment. "They're slaves?"
"Actually," Weiss clarifies, "it's most likely they have been ordered to stay silent. This way the sponsor of the event, or the host, won't have to worry about them saying anything harmful to the event." Father wouldn't even let me speak most of the time.
"I see…" Blake mumbles.
"Um… You have permission?" Rose responds, not familiar with the customs of this party.
The woman smiles, "thank you. And, no. You're not in the way. Guests are allowed anywhere."
"Okay."
Stepping to the side, the alien presses her fingers against a small panel. It beeps as she fiddles with the controls. Rose steps closer to the blue creature.
"What's your name?" She asks.
The alien smiles again as she faces Rose. "Raffalo."
"Raffalo?" Rose clarifies.
"Yes miss." Raffalo turns back to the panel and continues pressing a few keys. "I won't be long, I've just got to carry out some maintenance." She steps to the side and kneels in front of a vent cover. "There's a tiny little glitch in the Face of Boe's suite. There must be something blocking the system. He's not getting any hot water."
"So, you're a plumber?" Rose wonders.
Raffalo nods. "That's right, miss."
"They still have plumbers?"
"A future with no plumbing sounds like a load of crap," Yang jokes.
Her teammates groan at the blonde's joke.
"I hope so, else I'm out of a job!" Raffalo jokes.
Rose smiles and chuckles. "So… where are you from?"
Raffalo begins to undo the bolts holding the vent. "Crespallion."
"That's a planet, is it?" Rose asks, trying to connect with the alien.
"No," the alien responds. "Crespallion's part of the Jaggit Brocade, affiliated to the Scarlet Junction, Convex fifty six."
"The who and the what now?" Ruby asks.
The Librarian shrugs. "No idea. Sounds like a conglomerate of different planets."
"Oh, so the great and powerful librarian doesn't know everything?" Yang teases.
"Not by a long shot," he laughs. "But enough to get me places."
"And where are you from, miss?" Raffalo stands up and turns to Rose. "If you don't mind me asking." Her head tilts down in a sign of subservience.
Rose shakes her head. "No, not at all. Um… I don't know. A long way away. I just sort of hitched a lift with this man… I didn't even think about it. I don't even know who he is… He's a complete stranger…" The blonde shakes her head again, this time to shake herself out of the pitfall she was stepping towards.
"It probably wasn't the best idea to run off with a strange man you've never met before," Weiss critiques.
Blake chuckles softly, "like you or any of us have room to talk."
"Anyway, don't let me keep you. Good luck with it!" Rose offers to the alien.
"Thank you, miss." She replies as Rose begins to walk away. "And, um, thank you for the permission… Not many people are that considerate."
"Aww," RWBY sighs.
Rose smiles as she looks back, "okay. See you later," she responds with a wave of her hand as she heads off.
Raffalo returns to the vent and pry's it from the wall. She sets the cover to the side. "Now then," she says to no one. Grabbing the collar of her overalls, she gives a short relay to her boss. "Control, I'm at junction nineteen and I think the problem's coming from in here. I'll go inside and have a look."
Before she could crawl inside, Raffalo hears a slight metallic tapping noise echo from the depths.
"What's that? Is something in there?" She asks.
"Never ask that!" Yang cries.
"Is it that spider-thing?" Ruby wonders aloud.
The Librarian shivers. "I hope not."
As if on cue, one of the four-legged metallic machines crawls towards the entrance.
"Oh!" Raffalo exclaims, "Who are you, then?"
The spider is seemingly startled by Raffalo. It jumps and scurries back towards where it came.
Raffalo leans into the vent. "Hold on! I if you're an upgrade I just need to register you, that's all. Oh, come back."
"No!" Ruby cries, "don't come back!"
"Be careful Raffalo!" Blake adds.
The alien pushes herself deeper into the vent. Across from her, a shadowed image of the machine comes back towards hers. "Ah, there you are." A red dot, unnoticed by her, appears on her face. The spider's 'eye' shines as it turns the corner.
"It looks like a sniper's dot," Yang gasps.
"Run you fool!" Weiss yells at the screen.
"Now, I just need to register your ident." As she smiles at the robot as a second one turns around the corner. Another red dot flickers on her face. "Oh, there's two of you. Got yourself a little mate. I think I'd better report this to Control."
Before she could, more of the robots begin running down the vent towards her, each new one adding another red dot to the alien's face. "How many of you are there? What are you?"
"RUN!" RWBY yells.
The tapping grows louder and louder until Raffalo lets out a loud scream. "Oh, no, no, no!" From outside, all one can see is her legs slowly disappearing into the vent as the spiders pull her away.
"Oh my gods," Weiss mutters. "Is she…?"
The Librarian gives a solemn nod. "I believe so."
"Those hooded freaks are going to pay!" Yang yells, her eyes flashing red.
Blake gives a sharp nod and a short hiss, "I hope they'll face judgement for what they did."
"Yeah…" Ruby whispers, earning an eyebrow-raise from the Librarian.
Did I push her too far with this one? He wonders.
In a small room that barely holds more than a desk, the steward enters holding one of the metal orbs and his tablet. He sets the gift down next to him as he sits himself in his chair.
"Toss that thing away before it kills someone!" Blake orders.
"Yeah," Yang agrees, "toss it into space!"
As the steward sits, his tablet beeps.
"What's that?" He asks, only for it to beep again in reply. "Well, how should I know?"
Another set of bleeps answer.
The steward sighs and leans forward, pressing a button on his desk. "Would the owner of the blue box in private gallery 15 please report to the steward's office immediately?" His voice echoes loudly through the public address system.
"Why didn't he hide the T.A.R.D.I.S better?" Ruby asks.
"The Doctor, strangely enough, prefers hand-on compared to technology," the Librarian answers. "As long as it isn't needed, it's more likely he would just stash the box where he could get it easily. Also, don't forget how difficult it would be to break in."
"Still seems reckless," Blake scolds.
As he reminds everyone that teleportation devices are not allowed, the metal ball he was given unfolds and out pops another metallic spider, which quickly skedaddles away.
"Earth death in twenty-five minutes."
Rose, now back in Gallery 15, juggles the ball between her hands.
"Rose, please toss that thing away," Weiss pleads.
"It's dangerous!" Yang adds.
"Oh, thanks," she mutters as she sets it down.
Team RWBY gives a small cheer.
She reaches over to her other side and gingerly lifts up the plant Jabe had gifted her (well, technically the Doctor).
"Hello!" she whispers to it. "My name's Rose. That's… sort of a plant. We might be related."
Rose sighs and sets the cup down. "I'm talking to a twig," she mutters as the ball un-hatches behind her.
Team RWBY screams in panic.
Somewhere, a small army of the blue minions maneuver the T.A.R.D.I.S around a corner. A few grunts are heard as the Doctor watches them carefully.
"Oi, now!" He orders, "careful with that. No scratches. Park it carefully."
One of the minions walks over to the traveler and hands him a small piece of paper. On it's side reads 'have a nice day!' in an alien font.
Yang laughs, "oh my gods, please tell me the Doctor just got a parking ticket."
The Librarian snickers, "possibly. Or it's just a receipt."
"Still," Weiss smirks, "he should have landed better."
As the Doctor turns around, most likely to look for Rose, a couple of mechanical spiders crawl along the roof in the opposite direction.
Behind Rose, the mechanical spider lays its red light on the blonde's hand.
"No!" Ruby exclaims. "Not her too!"
Before the droid could do anything, it hears footsteps and quickly jumps into another vent.
"Rose?" The Doctor calls out. "Are you in there?" He steps inside and sits next to Rose when he sees her. "What d'you think, then?"
"Great. Yeah, fine," Rose answers, her hands shaking slightly. "Once you get past the slightly psychic paper."
The Doctor chuckles.
"They're just so alien!" Rose exclaims. "The aliens are so… alien. You look at 'em… and they're alien."
"Good shot on the culture shock guess," the Librarian whispers to Blake before grabbing a cup of hot chocolate from one of the stands.
"Thanks," she responds.
"Good thing I didn't take you to the Deep South," the Doctor mumbles.
The Librarian spits out his drink.
"What?" Ruby asks, "what's the Deep South?"
"I have only heard that term for two locations," he answers, rubbing his neck. "The first is a term for the dark side of a planet called Arrakis. It's a place where civilized people do not go, but the mystical creatures known as 'sand worms' do." [1]
"And the second?" Weiss wonders.
The Librarian sighs. "It's also a term referring to the geographical location that was the most slavery-dependent in my country." He turns to the cat-Faunus. "It's not a proud chapter in our history. We did abolish slavery, but it took far too long and cost far too much blood. I'm sorry."
Blake gives a small nod and thinks back to the White Fang and the people who oppressed them. "It's not your fault. It's not even my planet. But… thank you."
Rose leans back and stares at the Doctor. "Where are you from?" she asks.
"All over the place," the man quickly responds before turning away.
The blonde waves her hand towards the greater areas of the satellite. "They all speak English," she wonders aloud.
"I've been wondering that myself," Weiss adds.
"No," he clarifies, "you just hear English." He turns back towards Rose with a smile on his face. "It's a gift from the T.A.R.D.I.S. The telepathic field gets inside your head and translates."
Ruby's eyes begin to sparkle again, "cool!"
"Did yours do that to us?" Blake asks.
The Librarian nods. "It takes effort to bypass it. 'Helping fou Ai yu don gon Yu Ogeda'." [2]
"What did you say?" Yang wonders, confused.
"Secret," the Librarian answers with a wink.
Weiss grumbles, "it still seems like an invasion of privacy to me.
"It's inside my brain!?" Rose gasps.
"Well, in a good way."
Rose closes her eyes and her finger taps the side of her head. "Your machine… gets inside my head… It gets inside and it changes my mind, and you didn't even ask?"
The Doctor looks to the side and frowns slightly. "I didn't even think about it like that."
"No! You were too busy thinking up cheap shots about the Deep South!" Rose exclaims. "Who are you then, Doctor?"
He sits back up and looks away as Rose berates him.
"He's hiding something," Ruby realizes.
Blake nods, "something about his past."
Weiss glares at their new friend, "remind you of anyone?"
"What are you called?" Rose continues, "what sort of alien are you?"
"I'm just a Doctor," he replies.
Rose glares, "from what planet?"
"Well, it's not as if you'd know where it is?" he snickers.
"Where're you from?" Rose continues.
"What does it matter?!"
"Tell me who you are!"
"This is who I am!" He snaps, "right here, right now, all right? All that counts is here and now, and this is me!"
"Woah," Yang gasps, "someone touched a nerve."
Over 4.5 billion of them, the Librarian thinks.
"Yeah, and I'm here too 'cause you brought me here! So just tell me!"
The Doctor angrily gets up and walks down the steps towards the glass. With a deep sigh, he puts his hands in his pockets and watches as the planet below him gets ready to burn.
"Earth death in twenty minutes," the PA reminds everyone.
Rose, realizing she pushed the Doctor too far, jumps down and walks up behind the strange man.
"All right," she sighs, "as my mate Shareen says, 'don't argue with the designated driver'."
The Doctor and RWBY+ chuckle at the joke. Rose reaches into her own pockets and pulls out her phone.
"Can't exactly call for a taxi." She looks at the screen. "There's no signal. We're out of range, just a bit."
Team RWBY quickly pull out their scrolls as well and sigh.
"I guess that makes sense," Blake realizes. "Communications towers probably don't reach into different dimensions."
"Or different times," Ruby adds.
The Doctor turns back to Rose and grabs her phone. "Tell you what," he says as he pulls out the device's battery, "with a little bit of jiggery-pokery-"
"Is that a technical term," Rose giggles as he inserts a piece of tech into her phone. "'Jiggery-pokery'?"
"Yeah, I came first in jiggery-pokery. What about you?"
"No," she laughs, "I failed hullabaloo."
Team RWBY laughs at the duo's banter.
The Doctor closes her phone back up and hands it back to Rose. "There you go."
The blonde takes her phone and activates it, pulling up the first contact she had saved. With a nod from the Doctor she presses a button then raises it to her ear.
The phone rings for a few moments.
"Hello?" Jackie asks.
"Awww," Ruby smiles, "she called her mom!"
"But how?" Blake asks. "Her mom probably died within the last five billion years."
"Who cares?" Yang exclaims, "it's awesome!"
"Mum?" Rose asks.
"Oh, what is it?" Her mother asks, "what's wrong? What have I done now? Oh, this red top's falling to bits. You should get your money back. Go on, there must be something. You never call in the middle of the day."
Rose laughs at the realization of her mother doing mundane tasks while she is in space.
"What's so funny?"
"Nothing," Rose smiles. "You all right, though?"
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Jackie wonders.
"What day is it?" Rose asks, ignoring her mom's question.
"Wednesday, all day," Jackie responds over the sounds of folding laundry. "You got a hangover? Oh, I tell you what. Put a quid in that Lottery syndicate. I'll pay you back later."
"I think she might be a bit late on that," Weiss critiques.
"Just by a few years," the Librarian jokes.
"Yeah, um, I was just calling 'cause I might be late home," Rose responds.
"Is there something wrong?"
"No, I'm fine!" Rose laughs, "I'm on top of the world!"
The phone cuts off as Rose pockets her communication device.
"If you think that's amazing," the Doctor chuckles, "you wanna see the bill."
Rose pauses, "that was five billion years ago. So… she's dead now. Five billion years later, my mum's dead."
"Bundle of laughs you are," the Doctor comments.
"But… isn't that what's going to happen? Everyone dies?" Blake asks.
The Librarian nods. "One of the many oaths I have sworn is a perfect resemblance of this. 'Life before death, strength before weakness, and journey before destination'."
"So… it's about getting there and how you do it?" Ruby asks.
"Exactly," he responds, giving the girl a pat on the head.
Before they could talk more, the Doctor and his companion are interrupted by a loud rumbling sound as well as a slight shake throughout the satellite.
"That's not supposed to happen," the Doctor realizes.
"It's the spiders!" Yang yells. "You need to kill them!"
"Or at least figure out what they are doing," Weiss adds.
"Well, what was it?" The steward asks while sitting at his desk, looking at his computer. "I'm just getting green lights on this end!"
He quickly reaches over and turns the PA system back on. "Honored guests, please be assured that gravity pockets may cause slight turbulence. Thanking you."
The steward lets go of the button and quickly snaps back at the computer, "The whole place shook! I felt it. I've hosted all sorts of events on Platforms One, Three, Six and Fifteen and I've never felt the slightest tremor. I warn you, if this lot decide to sue…"
The alien begins pressing some buttons on his desk. "I'm going to scan the infrastructure." The machine gives a quick flurry of bleeps. "What's that?" He asks.
Behind him, one of the spiders crawls along the wall, inching closer to the window. It begins crawling its way towards the desk.
"Can't he hear it?!" Blake exclaims.
Weiss shakes her head. "He's probably too focused on the tremor."
"Control, I don't want to worry you, but I'm picking up readings." His response is another bleep.
"I have no idea!" He exclaims. "They're small… the scan says they're metal…"
Boop!
"I don't know what they look like!" He snaps. He looks to the side and sees one of the droids. "Although…" The steward starts, "I imagine they may look rather like that."
"Describe it so they know what to look for!" Yang yells!
The spider steps onto the desk and makes a few steps towards the steward.
"You're not on the guest list," he says to the droid. "How did you get on board?"
Instead of answering, the droid steps onto the desk and presses one of the keyboard buttons.
"No…"
"Sun filter deactivated," the automated voice declared.
"No!"
"Sun filter descending."
A bright light shines through the window, it's brilliant rays slowly pouring downwards from the top of the room.
"W-w-what's going on?" Ruby stutters.
"The sun is really hot, even from 92.4 million miles away," he teaches. "148.7 kilometers. Without a filter or atmosphere, the sun's light will burn away everything it touches."
"Oh no!" Weiss cries.
"Get out of there, steward!" Yang yells.
"Run!" Blake ordered.
All the steward could do was cry out in fear and terror. "No! Sun filter, up!" He commanded, but the computer wouldn't respond. "No! No! NO!"
"External temperature, four thousand degrees."
"Control," he yells, "respond!" The steward frantically smashes the buttons on his keyboard. "Sun filter, UP!"
He turns around as the light creeps down around him, burning away all but his screams.
At least, everything except the spider which escapes through a vent.
"I might need that bucket back," Ruby groans, reaching for where she placed it.
Blake's eyes were wide and her ears were flat on her head. "He was… burned alive."
"Most likely, he didn't suffer that much," the Librarian rationalizes. "Four thousand degrees is well enough to burn a body to ash, so it's possible he died painlessly."
"That still doesn't make this right!" Yang yells.
Weiss nods, "those Adherents need to pay!"
Back in the main observation deck, many of the other guests were still chattering about when the Doctor and Rose came running back in.
"My numbers almost poptarted twice that time!"
"This is the Bad Wolf scenario."
"And so I said, do me."
The Doctor presses a hand to the main door's control module. "That wasn't a gravity pocket. I know gravity pockets and they don't feel like that. What do you think, Jabe?" He asks, hearing her approach them. "Listen to the engines, they've pitched up about thirty Hertz. That dodgy or what?"
"Ugh," Yang groans, "I hate it when engines start making noises. It's always a pain to find out what's wrong."
"What's wrong is a spider infestation," Weiss clarifies.
"The real question is, what's the Doctor going to do to save everyone?" Ruby asks.
The tree femalen shrugs her shoulders. "It's the sound of metal. Doesn't make any sense to me."
"Where's the engine room?" He asks.
"I don't know," Jabe answers. "But the maintenance duct is just behind our guest suite, I could show you." She turns to Rose, "and your wife."
Before Rose could deny it, the Doctor does. "Oh, she's not my wife."
"Partner?"
"No."
"Concubine?"
The Doctor looks back at Rose, "nope!"
"Prostitute?"
"Whatever I am," Rose interrupts, "it must be invisible! Do you mind?" She waves her hands between the Doctor and Jabe. "Tell you what, you two go and pollinate. I'm going to catch up with the family." She points to where Cassandra… stands. "Quick word with Michael Jackson."
"Michael Jackson?" Blake asks.
"Singer and musician. Very popular," the Librarian answers. "Willing to bet there isn't a human alive after 1982 that didn't know his name. He got a nose-job done that made it look like he didn't even have one."
"I've always been appalled by those who try to fix themselves with plastic," Weiss scolds. "Just be the truest self you can be."
"Why 1982?" Yang asks, ignoring Weiss' comment.
"One word, 'Thriller', he explains. "I'll show it to you later."
"Don't start a fight," the Doctor orders. Then, like a gentleman, he holds his arm out for Jabe to hold. "I'm all yours." The tree takes it and the two walk out.
"And I want you home by midnight!" Rose jokes, earning a smile from the Doctor.
"Earth death in fifteen minutes."
"Alright, let's stop there."
"What!?" RWBY cried.
"But they still need to stop the Adherents!" Ruby cries.
"And the spiders!" Weiss adds.
The Librarian raises his hands in mock surrender. "Hold up. If you want, I can let it continue playing without me. I'll let ELI stay behind to answer any questions, but there's something I have to check on first."
"Yay!" Yang cheers.
"Where are you going?" Blake asks, glaring at their guide.
He stretches for a moment then walks towards the control panel, selecting one of the different room choices. "Just have to check up on something. Very routine, completely unrelated to this. Don't worry, I'll be back in a bit."
With a quick press on the tablet, he disappears into the floor.
"Well… that's not ominous," Weiss comments, earning a giggle from her teammates.
Blake shakes her head, "he keeps so many secrets… Just like the Doctor…"
Yang places a hand on the faunas' shoulder. "Hey, he'll tell us. Hopefully. It's not luck you told us about your secret when we first met, either."
"True," Blake whispers, blushing.
Ruby walks over and looks at the screen. "It says he went to Theatre 2. What's he doing there?"
"Who cares?!" Yang yells. "Yo computer! Can you start us back up!"
"Only if you don't call me 'computer' ever again," came the AI's quick reply.
"Sorry!"
"Say the word and it'll start." ELI explained.
"The word?" Weiss wondered. "Oh."
With a smile, the four girls all cried out:
"Hobey-ho!"
The Librarian slowly sat in a small chair. Unlike Theatre-7, this one was more akin to a homestead viewing. The room was about the size of an average bedroom, consisting of only a chair, a computer, and a screen.
"It's been a while," he whispered to no-one. "But I think it's time I caught up."
With a clap of his hands, the screen flickered to life.
"How far can we see?" He asked.
"7 chapters," came an automated voice. Unlike ELI, this one was male and didn't quite sound like an AI, instead more of a basic program.
"Let's get started," the Librarian sighed. "Hobey-ho."
[1]: I was looking into what the Deep South was in Whovian Lore. These were the only two things I found. One was a possible reference to Dune, while the other was a joke about America. Either way, I thought it was cool.
[2]: The first person to correctly guess what the Librarian is saying here, will get a shoutout AND possibly a scene with him in the Fic
Let's start with an apology. Hello everyone! It's been a while!
I'm sorry.
Life has been busy these past couple months. School, COVID, jobs, etc. You know, life. This has always been a way for me to relieve stress, not something to add to it. So I'm sorry if I haven't been uploading quick enough.
I recently uploaded a chapter to MLR, which was my first fic. I was going to move onto MMA, but me and my Beta needed time to think of some ideas. And every day I checked on RW, you guys kept giving me awesome comments and views that really made me happy.
So, seriously, thank you. I never thought I would be able to write a story that would make people want more of.
And for making you wait this long, I am sorry.
Now, this chapter was meant to hold the entire episode. I wanted to make it a sort of apology. However, due to (more) outside circumstances as well as the time it would take to finish, I thought it would be best to stop here at the half-way mark. It also keeps things easier to review (wink wink).
This story, even with me not uploading, has reached 2.5k views. Thank you.
Let's see, there were a lot of fun tidbits in this chapter. More things to theorize about the Librarian. And I wanted to explain a few things.
First, team RWBY+ will react and view the episodes the way the producers/writers wanted DW to be seen. Bad acting, botched CGI, and other 'failures' will not exist. This is as if we are watching their universe, not a show.
Secondly, I will change a few things. Nothing majorly important, probably just some words of dialogue. Either to fix mistakes or just make it easier. So I apologize if that upsets some of you.
Last of all, I didn't want to make this just a '_ watches _'. I wanted to make a story. If you're not on board with the Librarian subplot, I am sorry. But I cannot physically write a story that does nothing. I wanted a reason. To those of you who don't like him, please… Give him time. Give me time. Treat him like he's the newest Doctor. You just need to open your heart.
BTW, he is NOT another regeneration of the Doctor. Nope. I'm doing something different.
As for that last bit at the end, I wanted to give the Librarian a reason/way to update himself on the current RWBY episodes. That's what was happening. Nothing that might bite him in the butt later ;) (dun dun duuun).
Again, thank you. TTYL everyone!
Hobey-ho!
Guest1: I'm sorry you feel that way. But I wanted to try something new. He isn't a wanna be. He has his own connections to the Doctor (theorize that what you will). After all, it's not like any old person could get their hands on a T.A.R.D.I.S
Shane Ee1: I'll take that as a compliment. I have been compared a lot to the 11th, so the Librarian (who is essentially me) being referred to him is both an honor and comical.
Yes, the last chapter was filler. But it's important.
As of now, RWBY does not even know about the regenerations. Maybe after 9th's I can show them all the ones leading up to it (skipping the War Doctor of course).
MidKnightMoonglow99: Again, wow. Love how you go into every detail and thought you had. It really makes my day to go back and forth with you. I cannot wait to see your review on this chapter!
Rose Rich 2002: Ah! A new face. A pleasure to have you here. Thank you for enjoying it! Here's the update you wanted.
Guest2: Here you go!
Eclipse Metastar: I hope you enjoy it! I'm sorry for the wait.
Please, feel free to follow and comment on predictions, thoughts, etc. I am always looking for new ways to improve my craft. Tell your friends!
Also, if you have the money, please think about supporting me.
Pa tre on . co m
(slash)
readerwarrior