The Doctor wondered why he hadn't done this sooner. He didn't think he'd have much fun antagonising the Daleks as he was currently having, after all they usually just made him so incredibly angry, but now he'd decided that he was going to take them all with him he'd found himself having a grand old time.
He glided into the control room in Davros's chair, using the controls as if he'd been piloting the chair his entire life. He could almost feel the surprise at his appearance in the air as they all rolled slightly backwards from him. He took rather a large amount of amusement from it, especially cause he'd heard Davros's pleas for help as he'd headed down the hallway. They really hadn't been expecting him, had they?
"Admit it. You've all had this exact nightmare," he said before gliding in. It just cemented the notion that he really should have just tried one of those Segway things when he'd had a chance. "So, anyone for dodgems?"
He sped into the centre of the room, doing a little circle before turning to the large Dalek in the middle of the group. The Dalek Supreme, if his knowledge of the Daleks served him correctly.
Who was he kidding? He knew all there was to know about the Daleks. In fact, some would say he knew too much. Or they'd just compliment him on being so clever. Like Danielle. Who would have loved his sunglasses.
"Exterminate!" the Supreme Dalek commanded. The Doctor rolled his eyes as they all shot at him, wondering if they'd ever thought that it would make a difference. They were all quite obviously baffled when the light from their collective lasers disappeared and they found him absolutely fine in the chair, sipping on a cup of tea.
"Of course, the real question is; where did I get the cup of tea?" he said before raising his eyes to look at them all in disdain. "Answer? I'm the Doctor. Just accept it."
"You are unharmed," the Supreme Dalek stated as the Doctor put his teacup down.
He started spinning around so he could see every Dalek, so each of them could see how serious and in control he was. "Proposition," he started. "Davros is an insane, paranoid genius who has survived among several billion trigger-happy mini-tanks for centuries. Conclusion? I'm definitely having his chair."
"You cannot escape, Doctor," the Supreme Dalek reminded him. In response, the Doctor reached into the chair and pulled out his new Dalek gun.
"I'm guessing his personal forcefield only works in one direction," he said pointedly.
"The Doctor does not use weapons."
"Doesn't he?" the Doctor replied mockingly. "What about when his friends are dead? What about when his wife is dead, eh?" He smirked as the beeping that echoed in the room sped up ever so slightly as he pointed the gun at as many Daleks as he could. "Ah, listen to your little hearts beat!"
He turned back to the Supreme Dalek. He was really going to enjoy this. Since meeting Danni, he wanted nothing more than to die with her by his side. Before that, though, and especially during the Time War he'd hoped that he'd take as many Daleks with him as possible. It was looking like today was that day.
"Ask me what I want."
"Irrelevant. You will not prevail. You will not succeed," the Dalek Supreme told him.
"I've been at the heart of your empire for forty two minutes, and I own it, and I haven't even got out of my chair," the Doctor countered. "Ask me what I want."
"What do you want?"
He leant forward, turning on the transmitter on the chair. He wanted every single Dalek to know what he wanted. He wanted every single Dalek to know that they were destined to die. "Danielle Fielding."
It was a demand that came easily, and one that he knew was completely impossible. The Daleks weren't exactly hiding her from him, after all. It wasn't their style to let him zoom about in a chair while they had leverage over him. But he wasn't exactly looking for a reasonable demand. He wanted them to fail, he wanted them to push him over the edge. He wanted to kill them all and finally win after losing for so long.
"I want Danielle Fielding," he told the planet. "Right now. You bring her here right now. You do that."
"We do not have Danielle Fielding," the Dalek Supreme replied. "She was not located. She is not in Dalek custody."
The Doctor knew this, of course. But it didn't stop the fire burning in his veins. It didn't stop the devastation that was overwhelming him, and it certainly didn't help his judgement.
"Wrong answer," he told them firmly before adjusting the gun. "Fine, bring me Clara Oswald," he demanded. "I promised I would get her home safe. Bring her to me unharmed, unhurt and alive."
"Your associate..."
"I saw what happened. I was there!" the Doctor interrupted, jabbing his gun at the Supreme Dalek. "And I'm hoping, for all of our sakes, that it was a trick."
"It was not a deception."
"Because if Clara Oswald is really dead, then you'd better be very, very careful how you tell me," he warned lowly, threateningly. "Because all the power Davros had is mine. Everything he had, I have. And I will not let Danielle down again, not now. Not when I have nothing else to lose. Who's going to tell me that Clara Oswald is really dead?"
"Clara Oswald is not alive."
The Doctor glared at the Supreme Dalek for having the nerve to say that to him. His hopes of forgiveness fell away after that and he started taking stock of the Daleks around him. He needed to kill them all before they could do enough damage to the chair to kill him. Perhaps he could actually blow up the chair, that would cause a bit of damage, wouldn't it? Then again, that would only destroy the Daleks in the immediate vicinity. He wanted them all to burn with him.
"Doctor."
The drawl of Davros's voice pulled the attention of every Dalek to the screen on the wall. The Doctor also turned to see the old, withered face staring out into the room. "This urge for conquest. It is gratifying to see you learn."
"Davros!" the Doctor greeted happily. He wanted the old man to see his creations burn. "You're up. Sorry, this seat's taken."
Davros almost smirked, showing off his metal teeth. "Indeed. But not by you."
The next thing the Doctor knew, he was being bound up in snakes. Dozens upon dozens of hissing snakes slid up the chair, around his arms, around his neck.
"You've met my Head of Personal Security, I think. Colony Sarff," Davros told him as the snakes moved to cover his face. "His agents are everywhere." The Doctor could only gasp as his was completely cut off from the outside world in a mass of scales and hisses.
~0~0~0~
Listening to his voice echoing through the sewers was gut wrenching. Clara stared up at the ceiling, her eyes misting over as she listened to him demand for Danni to be returned to him. He sounded angry, but she knew better; he had crumbled. It was him hopelessly reaching out for a miracle that the universe wasn't going to grant him.
She wasn't even offended by how he seemed to only want her alive for Danni. She knew, deep down, that wasn't true at all. The reminder that Danni's last wish had been for him to keep her safe wasn't ignored, either.
Even Missy had paused to look up at his voice. She looked up at the ceiling with her own concerned look. "Listen to that; the Doctor without hope," she commented lowly. "Nobody's safe now. He'll burn everything. Us too."
Clara turned to Missy. She was getting pretty sick and tired of having to play along with her ridiculous game of fetch. "All of this could have been avoided if you'd just told him the truth," she snapped. "If he didn't think she was gone forever then we wouldn't be in this mess!"
For a moment, Missy almost looked guilty. Then she shrugged. "I'm always cleaning up his messes," she commented as she continued down the Dalek sewer. "This is no different."
"Yes, it is!" Clara shouted before storming after her. "This is your fault, your doing! You're the one who's caused all of this!"
"Like I said," Missy replied. "No different. We've been at this for centuries. It's just another game. See if we can get to him first before he burns us all."
Clara hated how blasé she sounded, but she also knew that there was no other choice than to continue following Missy into the depths of the city. Missy would be able to get her back to the Doctor before he did anything stupid. She really did hope they'd get there in time.
~0~0~0~
Danni paused by one of the large metal walls that surrounded the Dalek city. So far she'd done a rather brilliant job of keeping herself off the Daleks radar, and she didn't have to do it for much longer. They were all on guard because of the Doctor but that just meant that their attention was elsewhere. She should have no problem sneaking into the middle of the city where she assumed the hospital was. Davros was apparently not in a good way.
She'd feel sorry for him, but she had better things to waste her feelings on. Some crusty old man with a fear of death and a penchant for bionic eyes was not one of them.
"Danielle Fielding."
She looked up, surprised and suddenly alert at the sound of her own name. It took a nanosecond longer for her to register the Scottish accent, and then another one to relax. That was Theta. It was her husband.
She smiled softly to herself. He sounded just like she remembered.
"I want Danielle Fielding," he told the planet over some interplanetary Dalek PA system. "Right now. You bring her here right now. You do that."
He sounded upset. She continued to listen as she looked for a way over the wall. Her hearts ached at the idea that Clara was dead, but she tried to keep hope. Nothing was ever what it seemed to be, she had come to find. This might have been one of those times.
She managed to scale up to the top of the wall, swinging her legs over before looking out into the city. The middle of the Dalek empire and she was about to break into it. This was what her life had become now. Perhaps a vacation was in order.
"Not long, Theta," she promised quietly before pushing herself over the edge.
~0~0~0~
The room was dark, the air was still. In front of him was a blonde woman with tears in her eyes and anger on her face.
You do not love me," she bit out. "People who love each other do not just abandon them. They don't jump in their blue boxes and run away. The man I love would never have done that to me. But you don't. You think you do, but let me tell you something Doctor; you do not love me."
"You said you would always find me. But you left us both to cry."
~0~0~0~
The Doctor started, waking up in another dark room, although this time pale lighting did give him something to see by. He could feel the sorrow on his face and he hated it, no matter how much he needed to let himself feel it. Why didn't his plans ever go the way he wanted? Why couldn't he just die?
"I hope you are grateful," Davros drawled from his place by the only window in the room. "It wasn't easy to procure. And very nearly unique, of course." The Doctor leant forward, incredibly confused. "You should feel privileged." He looked around as Davros turned his chair around. "The only other chair on Skaro."
The Doctor looked down and saw that he was, in fact, sat on a metal chair. An actual chair on the planet of creatures enclosed in tanks. He placed his head in his hand. If he didn't know any better, he would have said that Davros had just tried to make a joke. As it was, the sound of his voice grated on his already frayed nerves.
Said nerves forced him to stand. "Don't get up," Davros told him.
The Doctor shot him a look. "You neither."
He headed to the door, determined to get out and continue his rampage through the Dalek empire. He ran his fingers across the seam of the door, trying to feel for anything that he might be able to exploit to open it.
"The chamber is sealed," Davros informed him. "And I believe you are not carrying your sonic device."
The Doctor let his hand drop and he walked away from the door. That was true. His glasses had been confiscated. But he couldn't sit still, he needed to move. He was already feeling that frustration building from being trapped in a place he really didn't want to be. Like an animal in cage, he needed to keep moving to let the energy out.
"I gave it up," he explained as he tried to find another means of escape. "Bad memories."
"I am dying, Doctor."
"You keep saying that, you keep not dying," the Doctor replied callously, walking past him to some of the controls to see if he could hack them. "Can you give it some welly? Come on."
Davros ignored him. "And it is time for us to conclude our business together."
The Doctor scoffed. "We have no business."
"We have nothing but," Davros corrected. "Look again at the cables, Doctor." The Doctor let out a heavy, frustrated sigh. What was it with bad guys? They always toyed with their food.
He walked over, crouching down next to the platform before getting up again. What was he doing? He shouldn't have actually be doing what he was told. He was trying to escape, not help. He didn't help anymore. He was just too tired.
"Understand what they are. What they can do. Just step a little closer," Davros tempted. The Doctor couldn't help another little glance at the cables. They were interesting, in their own way. And horrifically disorganised. He and Danielle once spent an afternoon sorting out the cables in the entertainment room after he installed the 4D disc player. If he was in a better mood, he'd suggest some of those cable ties.
"They don't have much respect for you, do they?" he commented. He turned to Davros, expecting an answer but the old man looked confused. "Your kids," he clarified before walking over to another control. "Have you seen the state of this place?" He wiped his finger across it, dust gathering on his fingertip. "I mean, this is exactly where you dump a smelly old uncle slash family pet slash genius scientist who couldn't even invent legs. Seriously, how do your boys take it when everybody else has got two eyes?"
His cruel words felt nice and sharp, and he watched Davros take them with the patheticness of an old man who couldn't fight back. Davros didn't deserve mercy, he didn't deserve kindness. He created the Daleks, and was proud of it. He deserved all the hate that came his way.
Still, the Doctor knew that the words were only a way of distracting himself from actually looking at the machine. The control he'd wiped his finger over kept track of vital signs, alternating where it wasted energy keeping Davros alive.
Even Davros seemed to know this. "You know what it is, of course," he said of the machine.
"Oh, yes," the Doctor admitted. "It's a hyperspace relay, with some kind of a genetic component."
"I am connected to the life force of every Dalek on this planet. It is what has kept me alive. As their hearts beat, so does mine."
When it seemed like Davros couldn't reach a new low, he found another way to make the Doctor's stomach churn. "Ooo. Nice. Vampiring off your own creations, just to eke out your days. I'm surprised the Daleks allow it."
"Oh, they have no choice. My Daleks are afflicted with a genetic defect."
The Doctor paused in his pacing. "What defect?"
"Respect." Davros said the word quietly, like it was something to be ashamed of. For him, the Doctor guessed, it was. Only useful to keep a hold over them and to stop them should they decide to turn on him. It explained why they kept him alive all those years ago on the Cruible. And, if they'd turned on him, he always had a way to…
Oh.
He looked at the cables as Davros grinned his sickly smile. "And now he sees it," he declared. "Now he understands. The cables, Doctor. Touch them." The Doctor reached out for them, hesitating just before his fingers brushed against them. It was so very tempting, wasn't it? "Imagine, to hold in your hand the heartbeat of every Dalek on Skaro. They send me life. Is it beyond the wit of a Time Lord to send them death? A little work and it could be done."
"Er, why would you be telling me this?"
"Genocide in a moment." Davros slowly glided towards the Doctor as he stepped back from the cables. "Such slaughter, not in self-defence. Not as a simple act of war. Genocide as a choice. Are you ready, Doctor? So many backs with a single knife."
It was so tempting. To rid the universe of the Daleks, all of them, forever. He could finally win the Time War. The Time Lords would be safe if they ever returned. Danielle, should she still be alive, would have one less monster to fear at night. His hearts could take it. He'd probably not survive it anyway. The cables were old, unkept. The universe could live with the knowledge that he'd died to save them all. He would rather them all remember one dead monster than live with a million more.
He pulled his hand to his chest, holding it close. No. He couldn't do it. He couldn't have her find out, for one moment, he had become that monster that she always protested against. He couldn't do it.
Coward, any day.
He let one hand drop to his side, but Davros caught it, raising it slowly towards the cables. "Are you ready to be a god?"
The Doctor continued to stare at the cables, letting Davros place his hand close to them but he didn't reach out. He couldn't do it. But perhaps… Yes, now that was an idea…
"Why do you hesitate? No one would know." The Doctor turned around, looking away from the cables. Oh, that was a clever idea.
"Your young wife is gone," Davros continued. "Clara Oswald is dead." The Doctor walked over to the door, hanging his head. Davros spun in his chair to face him. "Is this the conscience of the Doctor, or his shame? The shame that brought you here."
The Doctor stormed away. "There's no such thing as the Doctor," he snapped. "I'm just a bloke in a box, telling stories. And I didn't come here because I'm ashamed. A bit of shame never hurt anyone." He paused for a moment. "I came because you're sick and you asked," he explained. "And because my Danni-Girl would have come. I'm doing this in her memory, nothing more."
"You and I have very different memories of your wife, Doctor," Davros retorted. "I remember a young pale woman, with anger in her eyes and heart."
"Well, she never did like anyone being mean to me," the Doctor said with a little shrug. "She had very little time for it."
"Or perhaps that's just your excuse for her," Davros replied. "You make her kind and gentle so that she can be your conscience. She is your excuse."
"Oh, really? For what?" the Doctor asked him.
"For your compassion."
The Doctor shook his head, turning away as if he couldn't look at the man. He was sparing the Daleks from genocide at his hands, but he didn't feel like he was doing a good thing. The right thing, but not a good thing.
He turned back around. "I am anything but compassionate," he said snidely. "You've got me mixed up with someone who cares."
"It grows strong and fierce in you, like a cancer," Davros continued like he hadn't protested.
The Doctor shook his head, but felt himself relenting. "I hope so," he muttered.
"It will kill you in the end."
"I wouldn't die of anything else."
~0~0~0~
And so they talked. Back and forth, snapping at each other from centuries of fighting. Davros wanted to know what was in the Confession Dial. The Doctor would take it to his grave. Everyone knew that a Time Lord's Confession Dial was for the eyes of the recipient and no one else. Davros tried, but the Doctor kept it close. Maybe Danielle would see it one day. Davros would not.
At least he got his sunglasses back. He'd need them later on in his newly formed plan, and he didn't half suit them. Now that he'd decided to stop the Daleks using their own need to survive, his own was slowly growing. Perhaps, just perhaps, he'd get out of this in one piece. It seemed a shame to give his death to such hate filled race.
"Why did you really leave Gallifrey?"
The Doctor turned from the window. "How long has it been, you and I?"
"Long enough," Davros offered, which was very much accurate. "Galaxies have burned."
"And now you ask me a personal question?" the Doctor replied incredulously.
"You have slaughtered billions of my children, as I have slaughtered billions of your race," Davros said. "We have exhausted the conventional means of communication." The Doctor whipped his glasses off as he stormed over. He bent down to look at him in the blue, glowing eye with a smug grin on his face.
"My people are alive," he taunted. "They didn't die. I brought them back. I found a way." His words filled him with hope. His people had been exterminated, but he'd found a way to save them. Missy had come to visit because Danielle was well and truly out of her reach; he could do the same again. Find a way to save her.
It was a brief, flickering flame inside of him, but he could finally feel it. After so long trying to find the strength, after giving up on himself, he could finally feel it. He was going to get out of this alive, and he was going to save his wife.
"Is this true?" Davros asked softly.
"Gallifrey is back in the sky," the Doctor confirmed. "I don't know where, I may never know. But Gallifrey is back and it is safe from both of us." There was a warning in his voice as he straightened again.
"Doctor, my most sincere congratulations."
The Doctor's brows furrowed. "I'm sorry?" he asked, confused.
"This is wonderful news. Beyond all hope. I congratulate you."
Davros's voice shook, like he was actually going to cry. The Doctor shook his head once, because this wasn't right. "Why are you saying that?"
"A man should have a race, a people, an allegiance," Davros explained. "A man should belong, Doctor. Believe me, please. I am happy for you. So happy."
The Doctor couldn't quite believe it. Davros really was going deep for whatever plan he had, because the Doctor could have sworn he was going to cry. He really was dying. It actually made him reconsider his plan, wonder if he really was doing to right thing by turning Davros's plan back onto the Daleks. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn't all an act at all. He even made a joke! It all sat very strangely, and the compassion that Davros spoke of reared its ugly head. He felt sorry for Davros.
It was always going to be his undoing.
He couldn't just let the old man die without seeing the sun one last time. The planet may not have been as beautiful as Davros claimed, but then again who was he to judge? Home was always beautiful to the person who called it such.
He plugged Davros back into the life support machine, but it wasn't going to be enough. He was going to die before the sun rose. Perhaps, just perhaps…
The Doctor made up his mind as Davros started crying. "Okay, don't ever tell anyone that I did this," he warned before giving his hand a wave, showing Davros the golden shine of his regeneration energy. "A little bit of regeneration energy. Probably cost me an arm or a leg somewhere down the line. Or I'll just be really little."
He rushed over, grabbing hold of two of the cables that hung from the ceiling and connected to Davros's chair. This was it. Either it would give them man just enough to see the sunrise, and he could prove to the universe and himself that he was capable of compassion. Or, it would go exactly how he had suspected and Davros would turn like he always did.
The Doctor hoped for the former. He hoped that, even in the darkest crevices of the universe, everyone was capable of redemption. If he was seriously going to start looking for Danielle again, then he needed to know that she would forgive his lapse of belief.
Unfortunately, as always was the case, it was the later. The moment he started to feed that little bit of regeneration energy he felt the snakes slither onto his arms, binding around his wrists and holding him firmly in place.
Across the room Davros cackled in victory. "Hold him firm, Colony Sarff. He is precious to us now." The Doctor fell to his knees, crying out in pain.
"What are you doing?!"
"Regeneration energy. The ancient magic of the Time Lords. I thought I would have to tear you apart to take it from you but, as always, your compassion is your downfall." Davros straightened in his chair, the strength returning to his broken and tired body. "You have opened your veins of your own free will, and all Daleks shall drink the blood of Gallifrey. They shall rise stronger than ever."
It burnt, so deep and so hot. He had been expecting it, but that didn't mean that it felt any better to have his regeneration energy ripped out of him. He knew it wasn't going to be much longer. He knew Missy wasn't dead – like she would allow herself to die at the hands of the Daleks – and would be along to save him eventually
What worried him was the dark part of him. The one that was still fighting the will to carry on, to succeed, to struggle through the torment of heading to the deepest recesses of the universe and seeing what could be happening to her because he had failed. That dark part of him didn't need all his regeneration energy. He didn't want to regenerate again.
"There was a prophecy, Doctor, on your own world," Davros continued, tormenting him as was always the way. "It spoke of a hybrid creature. Two great warrior races forced together to create a warrior greater than either. Is that what you ran from, Doctor? Your part in the coming of the hybrid? Half Dalek, half Time Lord?"
The Doctor shook his head, acting the part out as best he could. He knew the prophecy well, even if he never spoke of it. He hoped this wasn't the start of it. It can't have been.
"Stop!" he begged, sobbing out of pain he couldn't hold in anymore.
Then there was gunfire. Four shots and suddenly the pain gave way. He fell to the floor, unconscious and the woman pointed her gun straight at Davros. "Ah, ah, ah," she said in warning and he made to move forward. "Don't make me push you out of the window, Granddad."
"Who are you?" Davros asked. She shot him a look, one that said she was very disappointed with the stupid question, before she bent down next to the Doctor.
She took a moment to look him over, a soft smile appearing on her face before she reached forward. "Wakey wakey, sleepy head," she called teasingly. "Now is not the time for a nap."
The Doctor jolted away, moving into a sitting position with a gasp. He'd expected Missy, so he stared at the new woman in utter confusion. She was looking at him kindly, in fact he'd probably say she was utterly relieved to see him okay. Her brown hair, jacket and clothes all reminded him a little too much of Jack, though, which brought his mind straight to Danielle.
"Who are you?" he demanded straight away.
Her eyebrows furrowed in annoyance and she stood up from the crouch she was in. "You're welcome," she replied shortly, like his lack of appreciation was bothersome.
"Thank you?" he said slowly, and the annoyance fell from her face. "Who are you?"
She didn't have a chance to answer, though, as Missy burst in through the now open door. She was wielding a Dalek gun, ready to attack, and looked positively disappointed that it was no longer needed.
The other woman, however, looked pretty irritated that she'd come in. "Oh, it's you," she snapped. "I should have known you'd be following him around like a dog with a bone."
Missy lowered the gun. "That's the last time I come and try to save you."
"Nobody wants you saving them," the woman retorted. The Doctor immediately liked her a little more just for the hatred she was sending Missy's way. "We were fine until you came along..."
"Oh, you are not fine," Davros said gleefully as the Doctor slowly stood. He'd thank her properly later. Give her a lift off this godforsaken planet, perhaps. "Thanks to you, Doctor, my creations shall grow to yet greater supremacy, and my own life is prolonged. This is the final defeat of the Time Lords. Have you nothing to say, Doctor?"
He hopped down off the platform. "Three." The three other occupants of the room watched as he rushed over and grabbed his Confession Dial. He slipped it into his pocket.
"Do you understand what has happened?" Davros asked him. "Hear my children sing."
"Two."
"Oh, I know that face," both the woman and Missy spoke in unison. The woman glared at Missy, cementing her place as his new friend, whilst Missy winked at her.
"All praise Davros, creator and saviour of the Daleks!" Davros finished. The Doctor didn't pay attention, he let the old man have his moment. He brushed the dust off his shoulders before glancing at the new woman. She looked impressed just at the sight of him. He'd missed that. Perhaps this, fixing his mistake, would finally give him the want to carry on. New blood would keep his hope burning, wouldn't it? Wasn't that what companions were for?
He had to find out her name.
"One."
The whole city shook around them, the sound of concrete cracking and metal moving just hinting at the severity of what was happening. "What is that? What's happening?"
"I knew exactly what you were doing, and I let you do it," the Doctor told him. "You transmitted regeneration energy into every Dalek on this planet. Every single one."
"What have you done?"
"One word. Er, no, two words, actually. First word, moron."
The woman snorted in laughter and he glanced over his shoulder at her. She looked amused, and not a bit frightened. Or happy, for that matter. Her face looked amused, but there was nothing else to tell him how she was feeling. Very closed off. That might have been an improvement on the overly-emotional Clara.
Who he still had to find. Missy was alive, that meant Clara was too. He'd pick her up again and they'd start their search anew for his wife. Sure, he'd left a child crying, but it was Davros. Danni would forgive him.
Right?
"Second word," he continued like his inner struggle didn't exist. "Sewers."
Davros quickly pressed on the buttons on his chair, seeing the damage that the Doctor had inflicted upon the planet. "No. This cannot be correct. How can this be?"
"Generations of Daleks just woke up very cross, and they are coming up the pipes. Or to put it another way, bye!" On his way to the door he pointed at the woman, clicking his fingers. "You. With me."
He disappeared but the woman nor Missy followed him. Missy, instead, walked up the Davros and gave him a little bow of respect. "Can I just say, it's been an absolute pleasure to finally meet you?" She reached out, prodded his bionic eye, then headed to the door.
The woman grabbed her arm. "Where is it?" she hissed.
"Where's what?" Missy asked in return, faking her ignorance.
"You know exactly what," the woman snapped in return. "Give it to me. Now."
Missy sighed heavily then reached into her dress. She pulled out a golden chain and placed it in the woman's hand with the attitude of a child made to give over their toy. "He's not going to notice it was missing," she pointed out. "He didn't even recognise you. What makes you think he wants you?"
The woman slipped the chain over her head, tucking it into her top. "Because he told me to go with him, not you" she said bluntly before turning, following the Doctor down the hall. She had to jog to catch up with him, but he was already staring down a Dalek when she did.
"This city is about to be sucked into the ground. Your own sewer is about to consume you," he was saying angrily. "There's no way you can win, there is nothing you can do, so just tell me, where is Clara Oswald?"
"I am a Dalek," the Dalek replied, slowly gliding towards him.
"Yes, you're a Dalek," the Doctor retorted. "Where is Clara?"
"I am a Dalek."
"I don't think you're going to get another answer..." the woman started.
"Yes, I will," he snapped and she held her hands up in surrender, pressing her lips together to show she wasn't going to question him. He turned back to the Dalek. "I know that you're a Dalek. Where is Clara Oswald?"
The Dalek came to a stop in front of the Doctor, gun not raised, not firing, not attacking. "I am a Dalek! I am a Dalek!"
"Doctor, stop!" Missy appeared with her Dalek gun. She held it pointed at the Dalek for a moment before realising it wasn't attacking. She lowered it, looking at it with a thoughtful frown. "It's you, isn't it? I mean, no offence, you all look alike, but it is it is you?"
"Affirmative," the Dalek replied. It moved closer to her but again didn't shoot.
Missy raised her gun back up, pointing it at the Dalek. "Clara's dead, Doctor," she told him solemnly. "This is the one that killed her."
The Dalek's head quickly swivelled to the look at the Doctor. "Do not listen to her. I am a Dalek, I am a Dalek!" it protested.
"I got her out of the city, but this one caught us and shot her down. There was nothing I could do, I'm afraid." Missy sounded apologetic and the Dalek started wheeling backwards and forwards, like it was panicking.
"I am a Dalek!"
"She ran,"Missy continued. "She screamed. I'm so glad you didn't have to see that."
The woman snorted as the Dalek continued to protest that it was, in fact, a Dalek. "Bullshit," she stated loudly.
Missy looked at her, offended. "I'm sorry?"
The woman shot her a look of disbelief. The Doctor frowned. While most people, including himself, had a reason to dislike Missy, the hatred was rather intriguing. What had happened between them?
"Like you would keep that to yourself," the woman retorted.
"I didn't want to have to break it to him…" Missy started. The woman held up a hand to stop her talking.
"You know, you can say whatever you like, but all I am hearing is bullshit," she said firmly. "If Clara was really dead, then you would have loved to see him watch it. That's just what you're like." She turned to the Doctor. "Clara's not dead."
"Why should I believe you?" the Doctor asked, suspicious of everyone at this point. "Why should I even… even trust you?"
"Beyond the fact that I just saved your life?" she asked before sighing. "It's either me or her, isn't it? They're your choices right now. Believe she's dead, or believe she's not."
The Doctor really wanted to believe she was alive. Not just because of Danni, but because she had been his friend once. He may never have admitted it out loud, but he would never want her to get hurt. And this woman in front of him, who had a stern face but soft eyes, made him really want to believe her.
"Who are you?" he asked her. "Have we met before?"
"Evidently not," she bit, as if she was annoyed he wasn't taking her at her word. He felt almost sorry for her. He met people out of order all the time. He remembered how horrid that was.
It also meant that she probably couldn't be his new companion. That was a shame.
The woman walked over to the Dalek, bending at the waist so she could look it in the eyestalk. "I know Missy," she told the Dalek. "I know her really well. But the one thing I know best about her is that nothing is as it seems. Daleks work on telepathic energy. If you want out, then you have to really want to get out. Open up the case." She straightened, raising her gun which had never left her hand to point it at the Dalek's eyestalk. "Or I'll kill you. Simple as, really, isn't it?"
The Dalek backed away slightly. "Mercy. Mercy," it begged her and she lowered her gun slightly. All three of them stared at the Dalek in mild surprise.
"You shouldn't be able to say that," the Doctor told it with furrowed brows.
"Mercy!" the Dalek repeated.
"That word shouldn't exist in your vocabulary. How did Davros teach you to say that?" He frowned slightly. "Why aren't you trying to kill me?"
"Mercy," the Dalek repeated again and the woman let her arm drop back to her side. "I show mercy."
It sounded like it was in pain. Each word came out sharply, but slowly, like it was against every single thing inside of its programming to say it.
The woman smiled softly. "I knew it," she said. "Think open," she told the Dalek. "Everything a Dalek does is a thought command. Think open."
The Doctor could only stare as the casing slowly opened, revealing a crying and shaking Clara Oswald. He rushed over to help her out.
The woman turned to Missy, a smirk on her face. "How are you going to get out of this one?" she asked.
With a wink, Missy turned and fled down the hallway. The Doctor sharply turned around. "Missy!"
"No, no, Doctor," Clara quickly said, gulping slightly as she tried to calm down. "Missy… Missy said Danni had escaped. She doesn't know where she is."
"She's not dead?" the Doctor asked her. Clara shook her head the moment the Doctor unplugged her from the case.
"She's not dead."
The woman quickly jogged to their side. "We need to go," she told them both. "The Daleks are rising, we'll get killed."
"Sorry, what?" Clara asked as she looked to the Doctor for an answer. "What's going on? Who is she?"
"No matter," he dismissed. He turned to the woman. "How did you know she was in there?"
The woman smiled sardonically. "It's not the first time Missy has locked someone in a robot," she replied.
That didn't answer anything. Unfortunately they didn't have a lot of time. "I have a lot of questions," the Doctor told her.
The woman grinned. "Usually," she agreed. He frowned at the obvious flirt, but he found himself already moving before he could ask her why she was doing it. He hoped it didn't reflect on their future together. He hoped it didn't mean that he got over Danni.
His face hardened. That would never happen.
The planet continued to shudder as they entered the control room where the Dalek Supreme was still stood. The Doctor quickly looked around before turning to Clara.
"Where was the TARDIS?" he asked her. "It was over there somewhere, wasn't it?"
"What is happening? Explain! Explain!" the Dalek Supreme demanded.
"Dalek Supreme, your sewers are revolting," the Doctor explained. The woman snorted. He turned to her, seeing the amusement on her face. "Get it?"
She nodded. "Puntastic," she praised, much to Clara's bewilderment. The room shook again and they all dodged the falling ceiling.
"You will assist, or you will be exterminated."
"Oh, well, go on, then. Exterminate away," the Doctor encouraged. Clara protested, but the Daleks did as he said. Clara tried to dodge the bolts but slowly straightened as they bounced away from them, hitting the walls and doing more damage to the building, but not to them.
"Oops, sorry. TARDIS force field is still here. We get in," he motioned to the trio, "you don't."
"The TARDIS has been destroyed!"
"Ah, don't be silly, of course it hasn't," the Doctor dismissed. "It just redistributed itself for a moment. Hostile Action Dispersal System. I'll give it a quick blast from my sonic, and the real time envelope will reassemble right here."
Clara leant in a little closer. Why did he always have to antagonise the bad guys? "Doctor, you don't have your screwdriver," she reminded in a low voice.
"Oh, yeah, I'm over screwdrivers. They spoil the line of your jacket," he explained. "These days, I'm all about wearable technology."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the sunglasses he had been wearing back in the past. Her eyebrows raised as he put them on. "No! No? Seriously?" she asked in disbelief.
He turned to look at the other woman, who was now actually grinning. "I like them," she told him before he'd even thought of asking her.
Still, it made him grin as he touched his finger to the top of the frame. Around them, the air began moving, building up into larger and larger particles of blue, forming the TARDIS around them all.
Clara grinned to herself. She wasn't sure what had happened with Davros, but she knew one thing.
The Doctor was back.
~0~0~0~
Watching the city below them disintegrate was a highly conflicting experience. On one hand, the Daleks were awful creatures and to let them live would mean that the blood of all they killed was on their hands. On the other, though, the Doctor never liked to see the death of so many. Genocide was never a good answer.
The three heroes stood next to each other; the Doctor, then Clara, and then their new friend. The woman who Missy seemed to have expected to be there, even though only the Doctor could have even imagined where they'd been brought. It was never a good sign that someone would work with Missy, but at least she hadn't tried to save her.
Clara glanced up at her friend. He would barely look at her, and she couldn't blame him. However, she was glad he was still here. She'd seen him give up all hope but now that had returned.
"She's out there, somewhere," Clara commented and he in turned looked down at her. "Danni," she clarified. "Missy said that she'd escaped. That must mean that you find her, right?"
The Doctor didn't reply. Clara was right; Missy would have never left Danielle alone for so long. He had known that the moment she had appeared with Clara back at the castle. He had thought the worst, thinking that his wife was dead or lost forever, and it had broken him. But his newly revived sense of hope gave him an even better option to believe.
Missy wouldn't have lied if she'd said that his wife had escaped. There was no benefit to it, nothing that would keep the couple apart. But, right now, he couldn't quite allow him to let the joy overwhelm him. It just meant that she was out there, without him.
"It doesn't make sense," he replied instead.
Clara frowned. "What doesn't?"
"When you were in the Dalek, you made it say mercy," he explained with that thoughtful frown of his. The one where he couldn't quite believe that he didn't understand, and how Clara had missed it. "It shouldn't have understood the concept, it shouldn't have been able to say it. How did a tiny piece of mercy get into the DNA of the Daleks?"
She watched the frown slowly disappear as his eyes widened. Something must have injected that concept into the Daleks, and that something must have been Davros. Which meant, at some point, a little bit of mercy must have been injected into Davros.
And he knew just where.
He turned, clutching the Dalek gun Missy had left behind tightly as he ran back to the TARDIS, leaving Clara stood on the ridge.
"Doctor?" she called after him, but he didn't wait and he didn't reply. He dove into the TARDIS and, before she could move, it had disappeared.
Clara sighed. "Great," she murmured before turning to the new woman. She hadn't turned from looking out at the city. Working with Missy, Clara guessed she was used to odd behaviour because it didn't bother her as much as she should have been. "He'll be back," she replied, unsure of why she was reassuring the other woman. "He always does that, but he always comes back."
She didn't reply. It was a little unnerving, and Clara shifted on the spot. "I'm sure the Doctor will drop you off somewhere though." Clara told her, again to no reply. Clara tried again, though, because what else did she have to do? "What's your name?"
The woman finally reacted. Her lip turned up into a small smirk, but she didn't turn away from the sight in front of her. "It's strange, watching a city burn, isn't it?" she commented. Clara nodded slowly.
"I guess so," she replied. "I can't say I have had much experience in it."
"I have," the woman replied like she was talking about the weather. "It never sits right, no matter what the cause. All that death, even Dalek death, always is so horrid."
The woman sighed. "I have a couple of names," she explained to Clara. "Most people, though, know me as the Time Child."
Clara's eyes widened, and suddenly all she could do was stare at the woman. No blonde hair, no glasses. Her breath caught, and her heart hammered in her chest.
"What?" she whispered, like she couldn't quite believe it. The woman nodded, and finally looked at her. "Danni?"
The woman's smirk turned into a small smile. "Hello, sweetie," she replied softly.
Clara had so many questions. What was she doing on Skaro? Why hadn't she said something sooner? When had she regenerated? How the Doctor find her and not realise who she was?
But she didn't ask them. Her eyes, instead, filled with tears and she chucked her arms around her. "Danni!" she exclaimed. The woman didn't response straight away, but slowly she patted Clara on the back.
"Hi, Clara," she murmured softly in reply. Clara quickly let her go, looking over her as she cried.
"I-I don't understand," she rambled. "Missy said that you were gone, what are you doing here?"
Danni shrugged. "I escaped," she offered. "And I ran, and this is where I ended up."
"But how did you even find us?" Clara asked. "We've been searching, we've been everywhere. The Doctor barely stops, and when he did…" Her eyes lit up. "The Doctor! He's going to be so happy!"
As if he heard them, the TARDIS started to reappear with the wheezing that always signalled that the Doctor was approaching.
Danni shook her head. "He never did take the breaks off," she commented. Clara chuckled and then, unable to contain her overwhelming joy, pulled Danni in for another hug.
"Always with the hugging," the Doctor commented as he stepped out. Clara quickly jumped off Danni and turned to look at him. He frowned at her big, bright eyes. "What is it?" he asked. "Why are you crying? Stop it."
Clara ignored his words and nudged the woman next to her. "Go on, tell him," she encouraged. The woman, on the other hand, didn't say anything. She just held her hands in front of her and looked down at the ground, like she was shy, or ashamed.
Clara frowned. "Go on," she repeated. The Doctor quickly made his way up the little hill to stand in front of them, observing the very uncomfortable woman.
"Whatever it is, I can help," he told her. "You saved me so I can save you."
"I don't understand," Clara admitted bluntly, her eyes never leaving the woman. "He'll be happy. He'll want to know. He's been searching for so long."
The Doctor's hearts skipped a beat, and all of his reassurances fell away to urgency. "Do- Do you know where she is?" he demanded. "My wife, my Danielle. Where is she?"
He reached out to grab her, but the woman flinched away, eyes wide as she stared at him. He pulled his hand back slowly. She had been quite fearless when faced with Daleks and their creator, but maybe it had all been an act.
"She's alone, and she's scared," he explained as gently as he could. "Please, if you know where she is, please tell me. I'll give you whatever you want, I'll take you wherever you wish to go. Please, tell me where she is." The woman didn't move again, just pressed her lips together and he could feel himself shaking. "She's- She's about this high," he motioned next to himself, "with blonde hair, and glasses, and the happiest smile you have ever seen. You can't miss her."
The woman nodded, then stepped forward. "You have, though, right?" she asked quietly, looking him over to make sure he was telling the truth. Perhaps she did know Danielle, perhaps they were friends. "You've missed her?"
He nodded. "Always," he instantly replied. "And as deeply as you could only hope to imagine. Please, tell me where she is."
She nodded again, and her hand reached out. For a moment she hesitated, and then her fingers brushed against his temple.
His knees almost buckled, and everything around him faded into nothing. He didn't reach out to grab her hand, to stop her from moving away, he just stared with absolute relief, and disbelief, and hurt and happiness at the woman stood before him.
She could see the question in his eyes, and her mouth moved for a moment in silent words as she worked out what she wanted to say. "I thought, if I told you, you wouldn't believe me," she explained quietly.
He nodded slowly, barely hearing her words at all. His eyes ran over her again and again, spotting everything little part of her that was different. He never suspected, why didn't he suspect?
His lips twitched. It was because she was taller. She was always so short.
"Clara, get in the TARDIS," he told her firmly. The teacher started, completely taking aback by being addressed, but quickly nodded when she pulled herself together.
She reached out as walked passed, rubbing Danni's arm gently before leaving them alone. They needed this time, as much as it broke her heart to have to leave Danni so quickly. They'd get their time together, though. She could wait.
They didn't say a word until they both heard the TARDIS door shut behind them. The Doctor didn't dare reach out in case she disappeared from in front of him.
"You regenerated?" he asked slowly and she nodded.
"She killed me," she answered, simply and to the point.
The Doctor couldn't handle it. She'd died. She'd died and he wasn't there to comfort her, to reassure her, to be the first face that she saw. He never got to say goodbye, she never got to say goodbye. His beautiful, kind, wonderful wife had died and he hadn't stopped it.
And now she was stood in front of him, with long brown hair and no expression on her face. His Danielle had been so expressive. What had happened to make the change so drastic?
He knew what. Missy had done this to her. Two regenerations that she had infected. The first bore the image of the man who had violated her, the second… well, actually, she looked an awful lot like Jack, if he was honest. No, this time the scars were deeper. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened. Those dark details that he had missed, he wanted to know each and every one so he could make them right again.
But, that was for later. His happiness, his joy, his love for the woman in front of him overflowed and he fell to his knees on the dusty ground. It jarred, but he didn't care as he looked up at her.
"I'm sorry," he told her, his conviction causing his voice to break. "I'm sorry that I didn't find you, I'm sorry that she got you when I promised not to let her. I'm sorry, I let you down."
She stared down at him and for a moment he wondered if she was going to say anything at all, or just turn and walk away from him. There was barely any reaction, nothing to tell him that she was furious or forgiving. His mouth felt incredibly dry, and he couldn't help but lick his lips.
Then she slowly knelt down in front of him. Slower than he had fallen, she'd done it purposefully and gently, with a grace that held his attention completely. She was still smaller than him, so he had to look slightly downwards to meet her eyes. He realised they were shining.
A small, tentative smile joined the tears and after another moment of hestitation, she hugged him.
He quickly wrapped her up, pulling her close, and tight as she shook but made no sound. He squeezed his eyes together, blocking out his own tears and everything else that wasn't her. His hearts sang, his skin tingled, his smile didn't fade.
"I tried," she whispered to him, her voice thick but she still didn't cry as she held onto him tightly. "I tried to find you. I ran so far, Doctor…"
He shushed her gently, not commenting at all on the way she didn't use his name. "You ran perfectly," he promised. He pulled back, meeting her gaze and giving her the biggest smile he could. "You did so well, my Danielle." He reached out, cupping her face with one hand, stroking his thumb over new skin. "Look at you," he breathed, absolutely amazed just to even see her again. "My Danni-Girl."
Her small smile sat perfectly on her face. He leant forward and placed a kiss on her forehead, feeling her twitch underneath the touch. He flared with unbridled anger for a moment at what made her flinch at every touch, but he ignored it for the moment. "Would you like a ride in my TARDIS?" he asked. "It can go anywhere in time and space, and she's waiting."
She giggled wetly, and then nodded. "That sounds wonderful," she accepted. He helped her off the floor, but let her hand fall to her side instead of holding on like he wanted to. "I've been travelling by space hopper for too long, now."
He frowned, glancing at her wrist. There was a vortex manipulator sat on it, a damaged one at that. The leather work was fraying, and marked with burn marks. He dreaded to think what the internal hardware was like.
"That's no way to travel," he agreed. Neither of them moved, her hand still in his. He was so afraid that she'd disappear that he didn't want to risk taking one step away from her. He was allowed the odd irrational fear, now, but he could feel the warmth of her skin against his. "I should have known it was you," he commented and she nodded.
"Yes, you should have," she replied cheekily. "But what particular thing tipped you off?"
"You were annoyed I didn't use my manners," he explained, giving her a gentle tug. They started walking towards the TARDIS, hand in hand. "I almost died and I didn't say 'thank you'."
"Manners cost nothing," she told him. "Maybe if someone had taught Davros some manners then all of this," she waved in the direction of the burning city, "could have been avoided."
He laughed, delighted at her strange logic. He could listen to it for hours. Her indifference at the Dalek city slowly crumbling would have worried him at one point, but he was too happy to care. It was only Daleks, after all. She was his Danni-Girl.
"You're blaming the Daleks on bad manners?"
"No," she started before shaking her head. "Actually, you know what? They didn't exactly come from good manners, did they?"
~0~0~0~
And they're back together again! More next chapter, obviously, but I hope you enjoyed this little taste!
Reviews!
Midnight Alley - Here you go! Hope you liked it :D
whitedwarf - Thanks, sweetie! I think, had he been in a better state of mind, he would have probably had more of a go at her. I hope you still like the new Danni, though XD
bored411 - She is, isn't she? Hope you like this :D
Iris-Reid92 - She did! :D
serenitysaiyan - I'm glad you liked it! Yep, he remembers her well XD
TheSlayerofGallifrey - And here we are :D
silverhawk88 - And you shall receive :D
Authora97 - Danni makes quite the impression xD
AGBreads - Thanks sweetie! It was a bit too much filler for me, but I'm glad you enjoyed it :)