Some days, she wondered if it would be possible to let the dark wave of claws to ascend on her, letting them tear her apart. But would good would that do? This world didn't comprehend the meaning of death, if she was fatally wounded, dying, bleeding out, she would slip away for only a moment then be sucked back down into her body, completely healed. The demons, as well, never completely died. Their ashes would twist into the wind, forming a new body for its original host. She would gladly take the rebirth of the demons over the fact they seemed to be multiplying.
"What, is it mating season?" She would snarl, sizzling a small demon back into ashes. For the past two months, however, there had been a lull in the attacks, and for that she was completely grateful. She could enjoy herself, for what it seemed the first time in centuries. And like a fool she let down her guard.
It was as if the demons had been purposely holding back, waiting for the moment when she stupidly put down her guard, did they then unleash a terror with such fury she had never known they possessed. Waves upon waves of needlelike claws raking down her neck, gouging her stomach, lashing at her face.
She was a god, gifted with powers no being should ever begin to comprehend, yet the waves of black claws over powered her and they slashed and ripped her open.
She fought for her life, for the Doctors, for Clara's, and she payed with her blood. She screamed like a made woman, blood foaming at her mouth, as she wrenched off the head of a demon. She fought wildly, her life on the edge of a precipice, and it was not enough. She could not fail, she could never fail him. She spurred her powers until she was left convulsing with no strength to lift up her hand.
Let me help you. Let me out.
"Shut up!" She collapsed to the ground and the demons laughed as they watched the creature fall at their feet. She was failing, falling to the ground, and already the demons had turned away from her, ready to pounce upon their next two victims which were walking away, unconscious of the battle scene behind them. They stood on a beach, the Doctor with some alien tech in his hands, trying to decipher the puzzle the tech challenged, Clara whispering something into his ear, something smart perhaps, she was always smart.
They were going to die.
She let out a battle cry of rage and fury and stood once more to fight away the pending darkness. She stood alone in front an army of demons, with no soul to stand at her back, and she was afraid.
Her faltered, pained steps earned her laughs and jeers from the demons as they watched her pathetic attempt to stop them. She chocked on her blood and tripped on her feet, but gathered her strength together one last time. With a shriek that would have shaken the sky, she released a pulse of golden light that turned the remaining demons to dust. She is safe, they were safe, but she fell for a final time to the blood soaked mud.
Her eyes were heavy, but before she succumbed to the darkness she saw a flash of light, a sound as loud and frightening as thunder, and the world
Her head hurt, and she groaned wishing she could go back to the warm darkness for a while longer. She slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes, clearing them from crusted sweat. When the fog cleared her weary mind, she became aware of two entities. One, she was back in the TARDIS laying on her favorite coach, a pillow tucked under her head. The second, a person with wild curly hair leaned down over her. Her eyes still unfocused, she shoved herself from the cushions, trying to gain an intimidating stance. A laugh echoed through the room.
"Don't fall down again sweetie, you took a bad hit you did."
She stilled, even though her eyes were struggling to adjust, there was no mistake this being was addressing her. A demon, it had to be, but she sways on her feet, the warm pulse of her strength decapitating, not even the monster made a move to bend its caged bars. Her eyes flared, the gold sparks flashing for a moment.
"What are you?" She croaked, she felt a slip of gathering strength in her fingertips and summoned it to build. The wild hair shakes, as if the being was laughing slightly. The creatures could just make out the figure of a woman.
"I suppose I'm many things." The woman reaches out toward her, either to offer her a hand or take her by the throat, she took no chance. With what little strength she gathered, she let it burst out, though the gold was dim, it hurtled toward the woman in a desperate push. She flew across the room, smacking into the wall with a thud. Immediately, the woman rose to her feet, a hand reaching inside her coat to reveal a small gun, which she blatantly pointed at the hunched creature.
"In what world is it a custom to attack your saviors?" The women speculated, trying to regain her breath; her gun still pointed at the creatures head. The creature stilled, kneeling on the floor not trusting her limp legs. Anyone who might have known her could see the slight astonishment, and confusion, fleeting across her face, but as there was not a soul who did, she only appeared impassive, and perhaps a little dangerous even as she knelt.
"What are you?" She repeated. A slight smirk tugged at the corners of the woman's mouth, "I should ask the same for you. What sort of being does...that?" She gestured to the distance between them, "Not human, but why do you take the form of one?"
The woman's words never reached the creatures ears, she gazed wildly from the point of her gun to wild hair, she had seen this women before, but how...suddenly the women was shoved against the wall once again, her gun flung to the floor, and an arm pressed harshly against her throat. Golden eyes burned dangerously close, "how..." the whisper of the word barely passed the creatures lips, but her astonishment was plain for the women to see.
Neither spoke, only assessed each other in wordless silence. Finally, the creature stepped back, flinging her arm away from the women, her face contorted, perhaps in disgust. Why, out of the rest of the universe, could she be the only one to see through the veil?
The woman rubbed her throat, and to the creatures annoyance, she laughed lightly. "Aggressive little thing aren't you. Remind me to never get on your bad side."
"Two centuries and this is how it ends," she backs away from the women, her exasperation evident in her rigid stance. The women cocks her head, "and cranky, tell me, is this the sort of attitude normal for your age?" The creature cuts her eyes at the woman, any feeling of longing for a companion had long gone cold. "Get out." She muttered. The amusement in the woman's eyes extinguished. "I saved your life. You can stop the aggressive attitude. If I wanted you dead, I would have done it while you were unconscious."
"And why didn't you?"
"I saw what you did, you saved him, and Clara."
"And if I hadn't would you have killed me?"
"Maybe."
That seemed to amuse the creature, but again her eyes narrowed.
"I've seen you before." The creature states bluntly.
"Have you? I don't remember meeting you. Have I ever tried to kill you?"
"Your her," a wave of exhaustion envelopes her, but her dignity demanded her to remain standing.
"Her?" the woman tilted her head at a curious angle.
"You married the Doctor," she mutters stiffly.
"Ah, yes, I am her then," the woman smirks, "and now that we are at formalities, who are you?"
"No one," she mumbled, wishing the women to disappear.
The woman scoff's slightly, "No one? What a strange name. Well, I have nothing to hide, River is my name," her eyes twinkled with an amusement that irked the creature. She stared at River, her powerful gaze almost peering into River's soul seeking out her secrets. They stood in silence for so long, the silence between them became unnerving.
"How can you see me?" the creature finally asked.
"What do you mean?"
For a moment the creature is uncertain, unsure how to explain. "I call this place the Mirror World, although the better term would be hell," she held her arms out, "this place exists within the same universe, but is invisible to the rest of the world. I suppose it is a place between places. For the past two century I have been locked inside this world. I move as I please, I walk among the rest of the world, but I am never seen. One could walk straight through me and they would never know it. So how is it now that over a two damned centuries can you see me? How are you even here?"
"I don't know."
"Do not lie to me, I know when someone lies."
"I do not know," River repeated again, her face solemn. It is an honest answer.
"What about the...those scaly slimy things?" River asked.
"Demons?"
"If thats what you call them."
The creature shrugs, "They are a part of this existence. This place is rather the holding cell to keep them from escaping into different realities. They never belonged anywhere, so became nothing more than ravaging demons."
"You're the protector then? The almighty king of the castle?" River grins amused.
"More or less," the creature did not smile back, though River detected a glean in her eyes.
"Now, how is it you know the Doctor?" River's face became grim. The creature scrutinized her, "what does it matter? I'm his protector, nothing more."
"But you do know him. Why else would you protect him from those demons?"
"Either if I did know him or not, it does not matter. Wherever he goes I must follow, whenever he faces danger I must protect him. I suppose that is the only reason I am here, to protect him."
"I saw what you did," River begins, "I saw you fight, you nearly died."
The creature laughs darkly, "oh, I cannot die, I have tried every possible way. Whenever I did try my body would pull itself back together again, but it's never the exact same body I previously had. There is only a slight difference, but I cannot not seem to stay just dead."
"You've tried to kill yourself?" there is disgust in River's voice, "You said so yourself that your purpose is to protect the Doctor, to keep him alive, but you decide to throw your life away, to leave the Doctor unprotected from what he cannot see?" She scoffs in disgust.
"Do not accuse me of what you don't know," the creature snarls, "there was a time when I had a selfless reason to die. I needed to die." She brushes roughly past River. She feels River's eyes boring into her back.
"I'll see you again," River's voice barely reaches her ears. She turns, her eyes resting on the spot River had stood, to only find she had vanished.
"I doubt it," she mutters and continues on her way.
