The Dread of Tomorrow and Yesterday – Chapter 7
Disclaimer: Doctor Who doesn't belong to me at all, if it did, I'd have coffee with David Tennant, Matt Smith and Christopher Eccleston on a daily basis.
A/N: Here's another Season 7 chapter for everyone. Nightmare in Silver! I thought it would be interesting to do this episode because I was wondering what the Cyber Planner would blab to Rhea about the Doctor's relationship to her. And, I wanted a bit of humour as well.
As for your reviews about Rose and River, I like River a lot. I think she's both the polar opposite and the exact same as the Doctor. While I do believe that some of the romance between the Doctor and her is forced, I do think they are cute together, but I thought River would just be a friend for the Doctor and Rhea in this one. She's really flirty and so is Rhea, I thought they'd have some really good interactions with each other. I think that Rhea and River would flirt heaps more than the Doctor and River and I really can't wait to write them together.
As for Rose, I'm a bit torn. I used to love Rose, and I cry almost every time I watch Doomsday, especially the scene where she's banging on the wall. I do have a few problems with Rose though, especially in certain episodes (Specifically Dalek, Father's Day, Boom Town, The Christmas Invasion, School Reunion, Doomsday and The Stolen Earth/Journey's End), she just seems a bit too jealous and clingy. I always felt like Rose's departure in Doomsday was a good way to end her arc in Doctor Who, plus, I feel like she's the only companion in the New Series that actually got a proper happy ending. Not to mention that I always felt like Rose's dimension cannon started working a little too close to when the Daleks were able to break the Time Lock. In this story, I think Rhea wouldn't take a lot of Rose's crap in those specific episodes. They will be friends, good friends, and Rhea will feel her absence like the Doctor does (when she finds out what happens) but Rhea will stand up to Rose. However, I do plan on writing a Time Lady OC fanfic that starts off in Season 1 that will have a jealous Rose. Let me know if you like the idea. I might put in a sneak peek a couple more chapters later.
Nightmare in Silver: Gold
The Doctor walked in to see Rhea at the console, pressing a few buttons and pressing down a lever.
"What are you doing?" He asked her, suspiciously.
Rhea looked at him, brightly. "Oh, she's teaching me how to fly her."
"You don't know how to fly her." The Doctor said, slowly and confused. Rhea had always known how to fly the TARDIS. Ever since he had first stolen her from Gallifrey, Rhea had been able to navigate her. This was definitely new.
Rhea frowned and cocked her head. "How would I know?" She asked, smiling nervously.
The Doctor felt like smacking himself on the head. Of course she couldn't know yet, she hadn't been taught yet, the TARDIS would teach her now and she would remember the knowledge in the future.
Rhea paused, as if listening to someone, and looked at him, narrowing her eyes. "Do you leave the brakes on? Is that why she makes that noise every time she materialises and dematerialises?" She asked, crossing her arms and raising her eyebrows, expecting an answer.
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well…"
Rhea shook her head and rolled her eyes. "I knew you were a crappy driver." She scoffed.
"I am not!"
"Of course you aren't, sweetie." Rhea said, patronisingly, and turned her attention back to the TARDIS, who was directing her around the controls of the console.
"Here." The Doctor said, handing her a flat, chrome laptop.
"You know, this looks remarkably like the one I have at home." Rhea said, turning the flat piece of metal around, frowning when she realised it looked exactly like her own laptop, complete with 'Have No Fear The Psychologist Is Here' laptop skin.
"That's because I got it from your room." The Doctor said, sitting next to her on the comfy plush seat in the library. He pulled a book from the table next to them and flipped to random page and started reading.
She crossed her legs on the seat and leaned back. "I could really get used to this." She said to him and then looked around the massive room. Books had always been a source of comfort for her and this had to be the biggest library she had ever seen.
She shook her head, opened up her laptop and opened up Microsoft Word.
"So, what are you doing?" The Doctor asked, not even attempting to disguise him peeking at the laptop screen.
"I'm writing a note for every one of our adventures. If my laptop comes with me wherever I go, I want to be able to know what I've done and what you've not done, so I don't spill anything I'm not supposed to."
He grinned and threw one of his arms over the back of the couch. "Ah, good idea, I knew you were smart."
Rhea rolled her eyes. "You shouldn't have had any doubt." She typed in 'Titanic' and put a dash next to it. She paused. "When did we go on the Titanic?" She asked the Doctor, turning to him.
"I don't know. Centuries ago." The Doctor said, nonchalantly, still flipping through the book.
Rhea choked, raised her eyebrows and stared at him. "Seriously?"
He nodded, not missing a beat. Nothing changed in his face to tell her that he was lying or making fun of her.
"Centuries? Really?" Rhea asked. "You were 903 the last time I saw you. Well, the suit-wearing you, at least."
"I'm twelve-hundred and something now."
Rhea swallowed hard, deciding not to read too much into it. "Okay, so, three hundred years have passed since you were on the Titanic. What year was it?" She asked, deciding to ignore the age bit for now.
"Um…" He thought about it. "2007."
Rhea blinked and typed that in next to 'Titanic'. She scrolled down a couple of lines and typed in 'Soviet submarine'. "What year is it now?"
"2013."
"Okay, so not that bad then." She typed in '2013' next to 'Soviet submarine', put a slash and also typed in '1983'. She stared at what she had just typed and groaned, her head falling back against his arm. "I am going to get really confused really quick." Rhea said.
The Doctor hugged her to him, placing a soft kiss on her temple. He's doing that a lot. I wonder what it means. I wonder if he does that to everyone. "It's all right if you make a few mistakes, just as long as you don't spill any of the big secrets. You know, the ones that have the potential to change the universe in horrible ways."
She glared at him for his lack of empathy and seriousness about the issue and closed the laptop. She rubbed her eyes and stood up. "Wow, saving the world from Martians from a Soviet submarine in the 1980s really takes it out of a girl."
The Doctor stood up as well. "Are you going to sleep?" He sounded disappointed.
Rhea closed her eyes in exhaustion and wobbled on her feet slightly. She guessed that it must have been the adrenaline that had kept her up for so long. "Yeah, might as well. See you in the morning." She said before walking over to the entrance of the library.
She didn't even make it to the door before a familiar throbbing in her head assaulted her. She groaned, realising what was about to happen and just hoped she'd recognise the Doctor this time as well. Her eyes slammed shut due to the pain and she reached a hand out, hoping that someone would help. Warm, long, masculine fingers fell into her hand and grasped it tightly, fingers entwining immediately, as if it had become second nature, leading Rhea somewhere. She was sat down on a chair and she recognised the hand to be the Doctor's, the Doctor she had just been with. Her eyes fluttered open once the pain had stopped and she met the Doctor's eyes as he had been kneeling in front of her.
"Rhea?" The Doctor asked, his voice low and soothing, which was very beneficial for the hangover-like state her mind had become.
"Yeah?" She murmured, weary, not really wanting to speak much.
"Are you all right?" He asked, cupping her face with his hand.
Unknowingly, she leaned into his hand, desperate for some affection after the onslaught of such pain.
"Are you going to ask me that every time we meet like this, space boy?" Rhea whispered, hoarsely. "Actually, a better question, am I going to be in mind-numbing pain every time I jump?"
His thumb stroked her cheekbone in such a sincere show of genuine worry and affection that it stunned her for a second. She wasn't used to a lot of affection from people, except for her mother, whom she still insisted gave the best hugs. Rhea was usually the one to initiate affectionate contact with people and even that was minimal in the last couple years. She had practically been diagnosed with tactile defensiveness a couple of years ago. She had flinched away from most forms of contact, except for her mother, for a long time. She had only started getting better in the past year. And now, this Time Lord had sauntered into her life and changed her very strict rules. Pull back, Rhea, not now. The voice in her head was very clear. She had to back away slowly.
"You're wearing the same clothes you were wearing in the library after the submarine." The Doctor said, suddenly, looking down at her white tank top, red and white patterned tights and red sandals.
Rhea's eyes widened. "Oh, so you've been there." She clapped her hands. "Great, that way I don't spill anything." She looked around, realising that they were in the console room and not in the library as she had been. "Where's Clara?"
"Oh…well, it's Wednesday, she should be here soon."
"Where are we going this time?"
He scratched the back of his neck. "I'm not exactly sure, I was going to ask Clara where she wanted to go." He looked at me, his face bright and excited. "Unless, you have somewhere you want to go?"
Rhea scrunched her face up. "No, not really, well, of course, but now's probably not the right time."
"Why?" The Doctor asked, frowning, leaning in close to her.
Rhea leaned in too. "Because Clara's here and she's brought two kids with her as well."
"What?" The Doctor shouted, turning to the blue double doors to the TARDIS, where Clara stood, wearing a leather jacket and a red dress, with two teenagers. The girl looked the oldest, probably thirteen or fourteen, and the boy looked about ten. Rhea remembered Clara telling her that she was a nanny. These must be the kids she looks after.Rhea laughed and leaned back on the captain's chair, anxious and excited to see what would happen next.
The Doctor walked up to Clara. "You brought the kids. Why did you bring the kids?" The Doctor hissed at her.
"I couldn't help it!" Clara defended herself. "They saw a picture of us on the Soviet submarine and at Cal-" The Doctor shook his head. "Somewhere else we've been and they know that we're time travellers. They threatened to tell their dad if I didn't take them with me. Just one trip, Doctor, please." She gave the man puppy-dog eyes and the Doctor folded, agreeing. Rhea shook her head. Idiot. All of time and space at his fingers and he crumpled after a sad look from a pretty girl.
The Doctor turned to Rhea and glared.
"What did I do?" Rhea asked, offended.
"You taught her that look."
Rhea smirked. "Did I now?" She purred, loving the effect she had on the Time Lord. "Does it work on you?"
The Doctor realised what he had just said, grimaced and walked back to the console. "One trip and one trip, only." He warned, looking at the children, who just grinned at him.
There was a familiar wheezing and groaning sound as the TARDIS materialised on a rocky moonscape. An American flag was planted in the ground and the Earth hung in the sky above. The door opened and the Doctor stuck his head out, followed by Rhea, who frowned, Clara, Angie and Artie. The Doctor stepped out, his arms wide, and spun around. The others followed him, just a bit slower, and Rhea, a bit wary.
"Well, here we are. Hedgewick's World - the biggest and best amusement park there will ever be-" He pointed at the kids. "-and we've got a golden ticket!" He stepped onto a rock. "Eh? Eh? Fun!"
"Fun?" Clara asked, her eyebrows raised in incredulity.
"Your stupid box can't even get us to the right place. This is, like, a moon base or something." Angie said.
"Hey!" Rhea defended. "Don't diss the TARDIS!"
The Doctor stepped down from a rock and Rhea sat on the one he had just occupied and Clara sat on a different one.
"It's not the moon." The Doctor argued.
"Actually, I think it does look like the moon. Only dirtier." Artie added.
The Doctor picked up sand from the ground and rubbed it between his fingers, examining it closely before letting it fall back down.
"Hey, guys it's not the moon, okay? It's a Spacey Zoomer ride, or it was." The Doctor insisted.
A door opened in one of the larger rocks and a man with grey hair peered out.
"Okay, so rocks with doors, I can deal with that." Rhea muttered, before going over and standing next to the Doctor.
"Psst! 'Scusi" The old man hissed. "I don't suppose you happen to be my lift off planet? Dave's Discount Interstellar Removals?"
"'Fraid not." Clara said.
"Sorry." Rhea shrugged.
"They were meant to be here six months ago. That's Dave for you, see, unreliable."
"Stay where you are!" A woman shouted.
"Oops." The man muttered before ducking back inside.
They all turned around to see a group of soldiers, with a woman heading the platoon, run into the area, guns loaded and aimed at the five of them.
"Throw down your weapons and identify yourselves." The woman ordered.
Rhea saw Clara move herself in front of the children and she stepped closer to the Doctor. The Doctor put one of his hands up and the other was shoved into his coat pocket, pulling out a golden ticket.
"No. No weapons! Golden ticket! Spacey Zoomer?" He bounced on his feet. "Free ice cream?" He tried.
"Who are you? This planet is closed, by Imperial order." The woman said.
Rhea groaned. "Your driving skills cannot be this bad."
"How's this?" He asked, pulling out the black wallet containing his psychic paper and showed it to the female officer.
Her eyes widened as she read the paper and she smiled. "Oh. Welcome, Proconsul. I wish they'd told us you were coming. Any news of the Emperor?"
"Oh, the Emperor…" The Doctor's eyes widened and he looked at Rhea, unsure of what to say next. "No, no, none that you'd, er..."
"We pray for his return. If there is anything you need, my platoon is at your service."
"Right! Righty-oh. Well, carry on, Captain." The Doctor got onto the rock again and saluted the female captain, a gesture which she returned.
"Platoon, let's move out. On the double. Two, three, four! Two, three, four! Two, three, four!" The captain shouted at her troops, who jogged away.
The door in the rock opened again and the old man stuck his head out again.
"Have they gone?" He asked.
Rhea nodded and the Doctor said "Yes."
"Uniforms give me the heebie-jeebies. Come on. They can't stop me being here, but they don't like it." He explained.
They followed the man to the doorway of the ride and paused when they saw what was before them. The Doctor grinned.
"So much for an amusement park." Rhea muttered.
The Doctor ignored her. "Ha, ha! You see? I told you it was amazing." He paused. "Well, it used to be."
They all stared at what seemed to the derelict remains of a large amusement park.
"It closed down. Wish I'd known that before I landed here. But let me show you my collection. Come along, follow me, this way. This way in, come on. Welcome to my show..."
Rhea rolled her eyes as the Doctor dragged her after the man.
"…Webley's World of Wonders. Miracles, marvels and more await you. I am impresario Webley." He finished and then coughed.
The room the entered was slightly dark and had an eerie feeling to it. There were steps that led down from the entrance into a room that was lined with wax replicas of different alien races. In the centre of the room, there were two worn out couches facing back to back.
Angie and Artie went down the steps into the main room and stared at all the figurines in wonder. The Doctor followed Rhea as she stepped down into the room and walked around and looked at each of the replicas herself.
"You see before you waxwork representations of the famous... and the infamous." He pulled off the sheet covering one of the figures and the Doctor smiled at Webley's enthusiasm. "Anybody here play chess?" Webley asked.
Rhea watched as the Doctor raised his hand with an eager look on his face.
Webley turned away from the Doctor and looked at Artie. "Perhaps you, young man?"
"Actually, I'm in my school chess club." Artie replied.
The Doctor sighed and lowered his hand. Rhea linked his arm with hers and bumped her hip against his.
"Ah, follow me." Webley said to Artie and took them to another room.
In the centre of the red-tinted room, there was a chess table with an empty chair on one side and a drape-covered figure on the other side.
"Now, let me demonstrate to you all the wonder of the age, the miracle of modernity. We defeated them all, a thousand years ago. But now he's back, to destroy you. Behold! The enemy!" He murmured and yanked the sheet off the figure to reveal a creature made of metal with half a handle coming out of one ear.
The Doctor's eyes widened. "Cyberman! Get down!" He shouted, yanking Rhea, Clara and the children down.
The Cyberman raised its head.
Webley popped up from behind the Cyberman, his hands on the Cyberman's shoulders.
"No need to panic, my young friends. We all know there are no more living Cybermen. What you are seeing is a miracle - the 699th wonder of the universe. As displayed before the Imperial court, and only here to destroy you - at chess! Careful now. An empty shell. And yet it moves. How?"
The Doctor moved around so that he was next to the Cyberman. He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and examined the metal man while Webley was talking.
"Magic." Angie said, sarcastically, and Rhea smirked.
"That might well be, young lady. A single penny wins you five Imperial shillings if you can beat this empty shell at chess."
The Doctor leaned on the table.
"I haven't got a penny. But I've got a sandwich." Artie said, holding up a small white square piece of bread.
"All right, take a seat." Webley said, accepting the sandwich.
Clara pulled out the chair and Artie sat.
Webley opened the panel underneath the table. "It is free of all devices, and yet it has never been beaten. Would you like to make the first move, young man?"
Artie moved a pawn and the Cyberman made a move, all jerky-like. Artie made his second move.
"Oh, no, Artie. No, don't do that, it... It's a fool's mate." The Doctor said, shaking his head.
The Cyberman checkmated Artie.
"If you can tell me how it works, I'll give you a silver penny." Webley offered, taking a bite out of the sandwich.
"I think…" Angie started nervously. "You do it with mirrors."
The Doctor, who was staring at the wall, turned back and looked at Angie with a look of pride. "Hmm, mirrors, clever girl." Angie gave a small smile. "Well, let's see, hey?" He examined the workings of the Cyberman. "Low tech. It's a puppet, monofilament strings, which means the brains are in..." The Doctor popped open a panel to a reveal a small-statured man inside with a remote control.
"Hello." The Doctor said.
"Hello. I'm the brains." The man said, deciding that the jig was up.
"Hello."
"Give us a hand." The man said.
The Doctor held out his hand and the man used it to pull himself out of the box.
"They call me Porridge. Ah, it's good to be out of that box."
"For you, miss…" Webley addressed Angie, reaching behind her ear. "An imperial penny." He said, giving her the coin.
The Doctor and Rhea leaned against the wall, watching the exchange with small smiles, when the Doctor suddenly straightened, watching bugs crawling on the wall opposite.
"What is it?" Rhea whispered.
"Nothing." The Doctor said, frowning at the wall.
They walked back into the main room and Webley removed a drape from another Cyberman.
"I have not one but THREE cybermen in my collection." Webley told the Doctor.
He scanned the empty black eyes with his sonic screwdriver, frowning when he detected nothing. Angie saw a replica of a tall man dressed in robes and ermine and looking very much like a Roman emperor.
"Is that the king?" Angie asked Porridge.
"Emperor." He corrected. "Ludens Nimrod Kendrick, etc, etc, the 41st - defender of humanity, imperator of known space." He introduced, looking at the statue.
"He looks a bit full of himself." Rhea commented.
Porridge looked at her. "Don't say things like that about the Imperial family - you can end up on the run for the rest of your life."
"They don't sound very nice." Angie said.
"Go on. If the kids want to ride the Spacey Zoomer, then I can operate the gravity console." Porridge told Clara.
Clara hugged Artie with one arm and walked out with him, followed by Porridge and the Doctor and Rhea. Rhea looked back and saw Angie frown, looking between the penny in her hand and the statue. Artie came back for her.
"Angie!" Artie said, tapping her on the shoulder, and they left the room.
Angie and Artie were floating in the air as Porridge and Clara looked on.
"Whoa!" Artie shouted as he moved about in the air.
"Smile! Say, "Spacey Zoomer!" Clara said, holding her camera phone out.
"We're flying!" Artie shouted.
"Having a good time?" The Doctor asked, smiling from where he was leaning against the TARDIS with Rhea, and making two 'thumbs-up' signs with his hands.
The children laughed as they had fun in the air. Porridge turned off the anti-gravity and children floated gently back to the ground. Clara, Rhea and the Doctor walked over to them.
"I think that was the most fun I've had in my whole life." Artie said, happily.
"It was…" The Doctor looked on, expectantly. "Okay."
The Doctor made a face and his shoulders slumped after he heard Angie's reaction and he walked away, scanning the area.
"Clara? I think outer space is actually very interesting." Artie said.
"Right, wonderful day out, Doctor, but it's time to get the kids home." Clara said, heading to the TARDIS.
"Yeah. Um, no. Not actually read to leave." The Doctor said, staring at the ground and Rhea walked over to him, slowly, dreading what was going to happen next.
"Why not?" Clara asked, confused.
"I dunno." The Doctor shrugged, not willing to give anything away. "Reasons."
"What reasons?" Clara asked, becoming suspicious.
"Insects." The Doctor said and Rhea groaned. "Funny insects. I should add them to my funny insect collection."
Rhea raised an eyebrow, coming to stand next to the Doctor. "You have a funny insect collection?" She asked, bumping her arm with his.
"Yeah, I'm starting to. Right now."
"How long do we have to stay here?" Angie asked, her head falling back onto the armrest of the sofa she was currently lying across.
"Not long. Have a nap. I'll wake you when we're ready to leave." He said before leaving and turning off the lights as he passed.
"Sleep well." Clara whispered.
"G'night, guys!" Rhea murmured, winking at them, before following the Doctor out.
"Good night." Porridge said and he and Clara left the room, following the other two.
Artie sipped his water and was about to set it on a table by the couch when the Doctor re-entered. He was holding the sonic screwdriver under his chin, the green light casting an eerie glow, not unlike a flashlight under someone's face when they were about to tell a scary story.
"Don't wander off. I'm not just saying, "don't wander off" - I MEAN it. Otherwise you'll wander off, and the next thing you know, somebody's going to have to start rescuing somebody." His voice became a low murmur.
"From what?" Angie asked, getting a bit scared.
"Nothing. Nobody needs rescuing from anything. Don't wander off." He smiled. "Sweet dreams."
Suddenly, Rhea grabbed the back of the Doctor's coat and yanked him out of the room, not before apologising to the children on his behalf for scaring them for no reason.
Clara walked with Porridge along disused tracks for what was either a ride or a form of transport around the park, while the Doctor and Rhea were ahead of them, inspecting and scanning.
"Was this really the biggest amusement park in the universe?" Clara asked Porridge.
"Yeah. Hedgewick bought the planet cheap. It'd been trashed in the Cyber-Wars."
"Who were we fighting?"
"Cybermen. Technologically upgraded warriors. We couldn't win. Sometimes we fought to a draw, but then they'd upgrade themselves, fix their weaknesses and destroy us. It's hard to fight an enemy that uses your armies as spare parts."
"Cybermen. Do you know them?" Rhea asked the Doctor.
"Yeah, we've met a couple of times." The Doctor said, giving her a wry grin. "I'm sure you'll meet them soon, anyway."
Rhea shook her head and made a face. "That is so not reassuring."
He wrapped an arm around her waist and hugged her to him, making her grin a bit for a moment, before she wiped her face of any expression.
"You beat them, though - beat them or you wouldn't be here. How?" Clara asked Porridge, curious.
They stopped at the edge of the hangar and Porridge pointed to the sky.
"Look up there - that corner of the sky. What do you see?"
There was a bright ring of light surrounding a circle of black nothingness.
"Nothing. It's just black. No stars, no nothing." Clara said.
"Used to be the Tiberion Spiral Galaxy. A million star systems. A hundred million worlds. A billion trillion people. It's not there anymore. No more Tiberion galaxy. No more Cybermen. It was effective."
"It's horrible." Clara said, blankly.
"Yeah. I feel like a monster sometimes."
"Why?" She asked, turning to him.
"Because instead of mourning a billion trillion dead people, I just feel sorry for the poor blighter who had to press the button and blow it all up."
The Doctor looked out onto the park through the empty shell of the piece he was examining. He placed his magnifying glass in the empty shell and they both looked through it, watching the park.
Rhea groaned as she saw two small figures going into the barracks.
"Clara! Did you tell Angie she could go to the barracks?" The Doctor shouted over to Clara.
"You know I didn't!" Then she turned to look at them. "She didn't…"
Rhea hung her head in exasperation. "She's just gone in there."
"Come on." Clara said, grabbing both of their hands.
They followed the trail they had seen through the magnifying glass to the barracks. Clara stormed in, ahead of them, and strode over to Angie.
"Angie, Angie!" She shouted.
"She has to turn up and spoil everything! I wasn't doing anything! Why can't you just leave me alone?!" Angie shouted with all the attitude of a teenage girl who didn't get her way.
There was a crash and the doors burst open with a bang. Everyone turned and saw a Cyberman standing in the doorway.
"Cyberman!" The captain shouted.
The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and scanned the Cyberman as the soldiers scrambled for weapons and cover.
"Angie!" The Doctor shouted, pulling the three females behind him.
"Attack formation!" The captain yelled to her troops.
The Cyberman stepped forward, his movements practically a blur. One of the soldiers attempted to attack it bare-handed.
"No!" The captain shouted.
The Doctor pulled Rhea and Clara to cover and one of the soldiers handed the captain a gun as they took cover.
"Attack formation – quickly!" The captain ordered.
They fired at the Cyberman, which was hit but the force barely knocked it.
"Upgrade in progress!" The Cyberman said in its computerised voice.
The Doctor used the screwdriver on the Cyberman.
"Angie!" Clara shouted as the Cyberman moved so quickly that it seemed as if time stood still. It headed straight for the teenager, picking her up and putting her over its shoulder while the girl screamed. They had disappeared before anyone could even turn around.
"Clara!" Rhea shouted and grabbed her hand, pulling her back.
"That was a Cyberman! But they're extinct." The captain said, confused, walking away from the Doctor, Rhea and Clara.
"Listen to me, we will get her back." The Doctor told Clara and walked over to the captain. "Captain, a word, please." He said, agitated. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I take it your platoon doesn't do much fighting?"
The captain made a face and hung her head. "What do you expect?" She asked, defensively.
Rhea groaned. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
"What?" Clara asked, incredulously.
"We're a punishment platoon. It's why they sent us out here, so we can't get into trouble." The captain explained, embarrassment colouring her tone.
The Doctor grimaced and his hands clenched in the air. "Ah, right, right, well, OK. As Imperial Consul," He took the gold badge rank off the captain's uniform and pinned it on Clara's leather jacket. "I am putting Clara in charge. Clara, stay alive until we get back, and don't let anyone blow up this planet." He snapped his fingers, took Rhea's hand, and turned to walk away.
"Is that something they're likely to do?" Clara asked.
The two kept walking. "Get to somewhere defensible."
"Where are YOU going?" Clara asked.
They stopped and turned around. "We're getting Angie, finding Artie and looking for funny insects. Stay alive. And you lot," He looked at the captain and her troops. "No blowing up this planet!"
He turned to leave but Rhea tugged his hand, making him stop. He looked at her, questioningly, but she just turned and walked back over to the captain.
"By any chance, do you have a gun?" Rhea asked the captain, smiling.
The captain looked shocked and the Doctor stepped up to her.
"Why do you need a gun?" He whispered.
Rhea rolled her eyes and took the gun that the captain offered her. "It's an alpha meson blaster. I don't know how good it'll do against a Cyberman though." The captain said.
She looked at the weapon. It was slightly bulkier than a normal pistol and was ivory white. She looked over it and decided it was good enough for her right now. "Alpha what?" She asked the captain before the Doctor grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the barracks.
"Alpha what?" Rhea asked the Doctor.
"Alpha meson. It's a type of energy. Why did you take a gun? I have a sonic screwdriver."
Rhea snorted. "Really, so if a Cyberman attacks us, you're what? Going to build a cabinet while I get murdered?"
"I see now where she gets it from. And the same gun as well." He mumbled.
Rhea stopped and looked at him. "Where who gets what from?"
"Spoilers." He shrugged. "You didn't answer my question." He looked pointedly at the blaster in her hands. "Why did you take a gun?"
"Guns make me feel safe." Rhea murmured and then brightened. "Plus, I'm a really good shot." She said, waving the gun in the air.
"I know that." The Doctor said, rolling his eyes. "But what-"
"Would this work on a Cyberman?" Rhea interrupted, holding up the blaster.
The Doctor frowned, scratching the back of his beck. "I'm not actually sure. They could upgrade before the blaster would work." He looked straight at her, as if reading her mind. "You're planning on keeping it, aren't you?
Rhea shrugged. "Oh well, it might come in handy later." Rhea said, grinning and tucking the blaster into the back of her tights, knowing the bagginess of her white top would hide the bulge, at least until she could get into the TARDIS and get a holster for the gun. "How does it work?"
"You pull the trigger."
Rhea raised an eyebrow. "Is that it? Just pull the trigger?"
"You get about twenty shots before it drains out of power. Then, you have to wait sixty seconds for it to recharge." The Doctor explained.
"What does it run on?" Rhea asked, curiously. An intergalactic gun sent all sorts of shivers down her spine.
"Alpha meson energy, it's…" The Doctor proceeded to explain the history of alpha meson energy and its uses in present day society and Rhea shockingly found herself listening to every word he was saying.
The Doctor and Rhea found their way back to the room in which they had left Artie in to find the boy missing and the lights on.
"Artie?" Rhea called out, but there was no answer. "Oh god, it's like the opening to a really bad slasher flick."
They ran down the stairs and the Doctor saw one of the insects on a table near the couches. He leaned over and started talking to it.
"Firstly, if anybody's watching this, those children are under my protection. I'm coming to get them. And secondly... little metal machine... you are beautiful." He said, his lips forming a smile. Rhea rolled her eyes at his badly timed enthusiasm. He scanned the insect with his sonic before picking it up by the tail. "Not even a Cybermat any more, eh? Cybermites?" He set it in his palm.
They entered the chess room, the Doctor holding the Cybermite up on his palm. They saw that the Cyberman was missing, the cloth that once covered it was draped over the chair.
"Hold on to me." The Doctor ordered Rhea and she wrapped an arm around his waist, while he used the screwdriver on the Cybermite. "Now... there's a local transmat link open to your home. If I can just find the frequency..." He held up the screwdriver and they disappeared in a flash of light.
They appeared in the Cybermen base.
"Hey, that really shouldn't have worked." The Doctor said.
"Doctor, help us." They heard Angie say in a mono-toned voice.
"Angie! Artie!" They ran over to the children and saw a blinking implant attached to the side of their heads by their ears.
"Crap." Rhea hissed, looking into their eyes for any sign of emotion but only seeing emptiness. She was vaguely reminded of the Cyberman's eyes and prayed intently that this wasn't that bad.
The Doctor scanned the children with the sonic screwdriver and turned to see Webley standing by the side, with metal circuitry encasing one side of his face.
"Webley?" The Doctor said, cautiously.
The old man walked out from the shadows. "We needed children, but the children had stopped coming. You brought us children. Hail to you, the Doctor, saviour of the Cybermen!" Webley then saluted by putting his right hand to his chest in a fist.
The Doctor and Rhea stood opposite to Webley across a small table in the centre of the room.
"As the battle raged between humanity and the Cyberiad, the Cyber-Planners built a Valkyrie, to save critically damaged units and bring them here and, one by one, repair them."
"The people who vanished from the amusement park…they were spare parts for repairs."
Rhea grimaced. "That is disgusting."
"We've upgraded ourselves. The next model will be undefeatable."
"Nothing's undefeatable." The Doctor said.
Webley walked over to the children but the Doctor and Rhea got there first, placing their hands protectively on them.
"We needed children to build a new Cyber-Planner. A child's brain, with its infinite potential, is perfect for our needs. But we no longer need the children. The Cybermites have been scanning YOUR brain, Doctor. It's quite remarkable." He started walking towards the Doctor, who backed away. Rhea didn't budge from her spot behind the children, deciding to watch what happens next.
"Also completely useless to you. Cybermen use human parts. I'm not human. You can't convert non-humans."
"Well, that was true a long time ago. But we've upgraded ourselves. Current Cyber units use almost any living components." Webley opened his hands to reveal his palms crawling with Cybermites. Rhea's eyes widened as he threw them at the Doctor. They crawled up his form and into him.
"Doctor!" Rhea shouted, rushing over to him and placing a hand on his shoulder. The Doctor cried out in pain as he was bent over backwards against the table while he was 'upgraded'. He stood up with a gasp after a minute when the process was completed. He had metal webbing across the left side of his face and Rhea gave a harsh sound and backed away, keeping her eyes on the 'upgraded' version of the Doctor.
"Incorporated. Yes." The Doctor said in a deeper voice than usual. "Yes." He patted himself down. "Unfamiliar pulmonary set-up. Nervous system hyperconductive. Remarkable brain processing speed." He laughed. "Amazing!"
The Doctor's body jerked. "Get out my head!" The Doctor said in his normal voice.
Rhea's hand covered her mouth as she realised that the Doctor was fighting against the Cyber Planner in his head.
The Doctor stood opposite to the Cyber Planner version of him in a neutral space witn numerous equations and formulae floating around. The Doctor's side was a warm brown with symbols in a long-forgotten language etched in, while the Cyber Planner's was an icy blue with equations inscribed all over. The Doctor strode over to confront his 'unwanted guest', while pictures of Clara in the last three versions he had encountered her flashed behind them.
"Stop rummaging in my mind!" The Doctor shouted.
"Just you try and stop me. Ooh, who's Clara? Why are you thinking about her so much? You should be thinking about that pretty thing in white over there. She's the one trapped with me." The Cyber Planner purred.
The Doctor growled. "Enough!" He shouted, making sure to block any thoughts of Rhea from the Cyber Planner, and unwillingly pushing his uncertainties about Clara's identity to the forefront.
"Fascinating. A complete mental block. Highly effective." The Cyber Planner praised.
The Cyberdoctor whirled around.
"Relax, relax. If you just relax, you will find this a perfectly pleasant experience. You are being upgraded and incorporated into the Cyberiad as a Cyber-Planner."
He jerked again. "Get out of my head!"
A/N: Well, I hope you all liked the first part of Nightmare in Silver. I hope everyone liked the beginning, with Rhea learning how to drive the TARDIS. I hope it wasn't too quick. Her relationship with the TARDIS will be explained in another episode, which I'm still not sure when I'll get to. There is something there, I promise. And Rhea finally got a gun. I've been waiting for this moment for awhile. She has a bit of a gun kink. And, did you notice the River reference too?I hope everyone wasn't too disappointed with another Season 7 episode, Rhea will be meeting 9 and 10 after this. And Rhea will be in the next chapter more, especially with her interactions with the Cyberdoctor. Let's see what the Cyberdoctor spills, huh?
Oh, and a question, Rhea needs to turn into something that can match her lifespan with the Doctor's, how does she do it? Bad Wolf? Fob watch? Perception filter? Become like Jack? What are your thoughts?
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