Running Across Timelines

by alpha087

The Oncoming Storm. The Last Sentry of Gallifrey. The Doctor and the Emissary were best friends throughout their childhood, right up until they graduated. After the War, the Emissary ends up on Earth in London the year the Slitheen attack. Faced with her former friend for the first time in years, the Emissary sets out to do what she does best: try to keep the timelines intact

4. Dalek

In a dark, quiet museum room, a wheezing noise broke the silence as a blue police box materialized. The doors opened and three people stepped out.

"So what is it?" Rose asked, following the Doctor as he looked around the room. "What's wrong?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Don't know. Some kind of signal drawing the Tardis off course."

"Where are we?"

"Earth," the Doctor replied. "Utah, North America. About half a mile underground."

"And when are we?"

"Two thousand twelve," the Emissary answered, feeling along the wall for a light switch. The Doctor nodded along, examining a display case.

"God, that's so close," Rose said, tilting her head. "So I should be twenty six."

The Emissary flipped a switch and the room lit up. Rose looked around in awe.

"Blimey," she gasped. "It's a great big museum."

"An alien museum," the Doctor agreed. "Someone's got a hobby."

"They had to have spent a fortune on this," the Emissary mused, looking over a display case containing rocks. "Chunks of meteorite, moon dust."

"That's the milometer from the Roswell spaceship," the Doctor pointed out to Rose.

Rose looked into a different case and gasped as she recognized the contents. "That's a bit of Slitheen! That's a Slitheen's arm. It's been stuffed." The Emissary walked over to see.

"Oh, look at you." Both girls turned to him. The Emissary blanched at what he was looking at, while Rose looked confused.

"What is it?"

The Doctor turned away from the Cyberman head. "An old friend of mine. Well, enemy. The stuff of nightmares reduced to an exhibit." He sighed, looking at the Emissary. "I'm getting old."

"Is that where the signal's coming from?" Rose asked. Both Time Lords shook their heads.

"No, it's stone dead," the Doctor explained. "The signal's alive. Something's reaching out, calling for help." The Doctor touched the display case, making an alarm go off. Armed guards rushed in, surrounding the trio and cutting off access to the TARDIS.

Rose glanced at her companions. "If someone's collecting aliens, that makes you two Exhibit A."

~~~

The trio was brought into an office like room.

"And this is the last," a young man was saying. He was showing his boss a metal thing. "Paid eight hundred thousand dollars for it."

"What does it do?" the boss asked, taking it.

"Well, you see the tubes on the side?" said the young man, pointing them out. "It must be to channel something. I think maybe fuel."

"I really wouldn't hold it like that," the Doctor piped up. Rose and the Emissary exchanged exasperated looks.

"Shut it," said Goddard.

"Really, though," he insisted, "that's wrong."

"Is it dangerous?" the young man, Adam, asked.

The Doctor shook his head. "No, it just looks silly." He reached out for the item, then froze as the guns clicked all around him. Van Statten handed him the object. "You just need to be delicate." He stroked it gently and coaxed several notes out of it.

"It's a musical instrument," Van Statten realized.

"And it's a long way from home," the Doctor said.

"Here, let me." Van Statten took the instrument and rubbed on it harshly. The Emissary winced at the screechy sounds he produced.

"He did say delicate," she reminded him. "It reacts to the smallest fingerprint. It needs precision." Van Statten adjusted his pressure and the notes turned sweeter.

"Very good," the Doctor praised. "Quite the expert."

Van Statten looked at him. "As are you." The trio all collectively winced as he tossed it carelessly over his shoulder. "Who exactly are you?"

"I'm the Doctor," he introduced. Rose and the Emissary didn't get to answer before he continued. "And who are you?"

"Like you don't know," Van Statten scoffed. "We're hidden away with the most valuable collection of extra-terrestrial artefacts in the world, and you just stumbled in by mistake."

"Pretty much sums me up, yeah."

"The question is," Van Statten wondered. "How did you get in? Fifty three floors down, with your little cat burglar accomplices. You're quite a collector yourself, they're rather pretty."

Rose snarled. "They're going to smack you if you keep calling them they."

Van Statten laughed. "This one's English too! Hey, little Lord Fauntleroy. Got you a girlfriend."

"This is Mister Henry Van Statten." Adam stepped forward.

"And who is he when he's at home?" the Emissary asked. Adam straightened proudly.

"Mister Van Statten owns the internet."

"Don't be stupid," Rose laughed. "No one owns the internet."

Van Statten winked at her. "And let's just keep the whole world thinking that way, right kids?"

"So you're just about an expert in everything except the things in your museum," the Doctor guessed, scowling. "Anything you don't understand, you lock up."

Van Statten raised one eyebrow. "And you claim greater knowledge?"

"I don't need to make claims," the Doctor said, smirking. "I know how good I am." The Emissary rolled her eyes at him, but said nothing.

"And yet, I captured you," Van Statten retorted. "Right next to the Cage. What were you doing down there?"

"You tell me."

Van Statten sighed. "The cage contains my one living specimen."

"And what's that?"

"Like you don't know," Van Statten scoffed.

"Show me."

"You want to see it?"

Rose glanced at the Emissary, grinning. "Blimey, you can smell the testosterone." The Emissary snorted as the two men glared.

Van Statten caved first. "Goddard, inform the Cage we're heading down." He pointed at Adam. "You, English. Look after the girls. Go and canoodle or spoon or whatever it is you British do. And you, Doctor with no name, come and see my pet."

~~~

The Doctor followed Van Statten through the building. "We've tried everything," Van Statten was saying. "The creature has shielded itself but there's definite signs of life inside."

"Inside?" the Doctor asked. "Inside what?"

Van Statten didn't answer as they were approached by one of the scientists watching the Cage. "Welcome back, sir," the scientist said, glancing warily at the Doctor. "I've had to take the power down. The Metaltron is resting."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Metaltron?"

Van Statten grinned. "Thought of it myself. Good, isn't it?" He ignored the Doctor's raised eyebrow and continued. "Although I'd much to prefer to find out it's real name."

One of the scientists at the Cage handed the Doctor a pair of gauntlets. "Here, you'd better put these on. The last guy that touched it burst into flames."

"I won't touch it then. "

Van Statten gestured to the Cage door and looked at the Doctor. "Go ahead, Doctor. Impress me." The Doctor stepped through the door cautiously and Van Statten turned to the guards as soon as it closed. "Don't open that door until we get a result."

~~~

The cage was plunged into darkness as soon as the door shut. The Doctor stepped forward cautiously and spoke into the empty space.

"Look, I'm sorry about this," he apologized. "Mr. Van Statten might think he's clever, but never mind him. I've come to help." He took another step forward. "I'm the Doctor." Blue and white lights blinked next to each other.

"Doc-Tor?" The Doctor froze.

"Impossible," he breathed in horror.

"The Doctor?" The lights finally turned on and confirmed his fear. Van Statten had a Dalek. The Dalek caught sight of him and began screeching. "Exterminate! Exterminate!"

The Doctor dashed over to the door and pounded on it, terror coursing through his veins. "Let me out!"

"Exterminate!"

~~~

Outside, Goddard watched nervously as the monitors portrayed what was happening inside. "Sir," she said to Van Statten, "it's going to kill him."

Van Statten didn't seem to care. "It's talking!"

~~~

"You are an enemy of the Daleks!" the Dalek screeched. "You must be destroyed!"

The Doctor gave up on trying to get out and turned around to face the Dalek. He watched as its gun arm twitched and nothing happened. "It's not working," he said, then started to laugh almost hysterically. "Fantastic! Oh, fantastic! Powerless!" His laugh dropped off and he sneered. "Look at you. The great space dustbin. How does it feel?" He stalked forward until he was inches away from its eyestalk.

The Dalek screeched. "Keep back!"

"What for?" the Doctor asked. "What're you going to do to me? If you can't kill, then what are you good for, Dalek?" He spit the name out. "What's the point of you? You're nothing. What the hell are you here for?"

"I am waiting for orders," the Dalek screeched.

The Doctor scoffed. "What does that mean?"

"I am a soldier," the Dalek answered. "I was bred to receive orders."

The Doctor snorted. "Well, you're never going to get any. Not ever."

"I demand orders!"

The Doctor sneered, suddenly furious. "They're never going to come!" he yelled. "Your race is dead! You all burnt, all of you. Ten million ships on fire. The entire Dalek race wiped out in one second."

"You lie!"

"I watched it happen!" the Doctor cried. "I made it happen."

"You destroyed us?" The Doctor turned away, fury melting.

"I had no choice," the Doctor answered.

"And what of the Time Lords?"

The Doctor swallowed. "Dead," he said flatly. "They burned with you." Well, all but one, he added internally. "The end of the Last Great Time War. Everyone lost."

The Dalek somehow sounded full of derision. "And the coward survived."

"Oh, and I caught your little signal," the Doctor singsonged. "Help me." He sneered. "Poor little thing. But there's no one else coming, 'cause there's no one else left."

The Dalek paused. "I am alone in the universe."

The Doctor nodded. "Yup."

"So are you," the Dalek continued. "We are the same."

"We are not the same," the Doctor snarled. "I'm not-" He paused abruptly, catching sight of the electricity lever. He thought of the War and the pain in the Emissary's eyes whenever it was mentioned. "No, wait. Maybe we are. You're right. Yeah, okay. You've got a point." He thought of all the Time Lords dead at the Daleks' hands and his eyes darkened. "'Cause I know what to do. I know what should happen. I know what you deserve." He gripped the lever tightly and glared at the Dalek. "Exterminate."

The Dalek screeched as electricity washed over it. "Have pity."

"Why should I?" the Doctor snapped. "You never did."

~~~

Van Statten looked over at the technician by the door. "Get him out."

~~~

"Help me," the Dalek screeched.

The Doctor reached for the lever. Before he could up the voltage again, he was dragged away by Van Statten's guards. Van Statten stepped up to the Dalek. "I just saved your life," he told it. "Now talk to me. Goddamn it, talk to me!"

The technician turned off the electricity as the Doctor shouted at him. "You've got to destroy it!"

Van Statten waved his hand and the guards dragged the Doctor out. "The last in the universe," Van Statten mused. "And now I know your name. Dalek. Speak to me, Dalek. I am Henry van Statten, now recognize me!" He turned angrily to the technician. "Make it talk again, Simmons. Whatever it takes."

~~~

While the Doctor was busy in the Cage, the Emissary and Rose followed Adam to his workshop.

"Sorry about the mess," Adam apologized as he led the two women in. "Mr. Van Statten sort of lets me do my own thing, so long as I deliver the goods." He picked up a piece of metal and handed it to Rose. "What do you think that is?"

The Emissary glanced at the metal. Rose raised an eyebrow at Adam. "Er, a lump of metal?"

Adam grinned. "Yeah. Yeah, but I think, well, I'm almost certain, it's from the hull of a spacecraft." The Emissary rolled her eyes and moved off to examine other things. "The thing is," Adam continued, not noticing her leave, "it's all true. Everything the United Nations tried to keep quiet, spacecraft, aliens, visitors to earth. They really exist."

"That's amazing," Rose drawled. The Emissary fought back a grin at her tone.

"I know it sounds incredible," Adam said excitedly, "but I honestly believe the whole universe is just teeming with life."

Rose rolled her eyes as he turned away. "I'm gobsmacked, yeah."

The Emissary looked over at them. "So what?" she asked Adam. "You just... catalogue it?"

Adam looked over at her, startled, then smiled. "Best job in the world."

"Imagine if you could get out there," Rose said. "Travel amongst the stars and see it for real."

"Yeah, I'd give anything," Adam agreed. "I don't think it's going to happen. Not in our lifetimes."

"Well, you never know," the Emissary quipped from across the room. She held up a device for Adam to see. "I found another instrument."

"What about all those people who say they've been inside of spaceships and things and talked to aliens?" Rose asked as Adam took the instrument eagerly.

"I think they're nutters," he answered, tossing the instrument onto a table. Rose winced.

"Yeah," she agreed, ignoring the Emissary's eyes on her. "Me too. So how'd you end up here?"

"Van Statten has agents all over the world looking for geniuses to recruit," Adam explained.

"Oh, right," Rose nodded. "You're a genius."

"Sorry, but yeah," Adam said. The Emissary rolled her eyes. "I can't help it. I was born clever. When I was eight, I logged onto the US Defense System. Nearly caused World War Three." He laughed.

The Emissary eyed him. "Not that it takes much to set off the US, but almost causing a war is not funny."

Adam glanced at her dismissively. "Well, you weren't there to see it," he retorted. He turned to Rose. "They were just running about. Fantastic!"

She stared at him flatly. "Now you sound like the Doctor."

Adam gave her a look. "Are you and him...?"

"No," Rose shook her head. "We're just friends."

"Good," Adam nodded.

"Why is it good?"

"It just is."

The Emissary walked up to them, brushing her hands on her jeans. "So if you're such a genius, why aren't you downstairs?"

"Yeah," Rose agreed, "you've got all these bits of metal and stuff, but Mr. Van Statten's got a living creature down there."

"Yeah," Adam replied looking at the ground. "Yeah, well, I did ask, but he keeps it to himself." He looked up at the unimpressed faces of the two women. "Although... if you're a genius, it doesn't take long to patch through on the comm system."

Rose gestured to the computer. "Let's have a look, then."

Adam had the camera feed pulled up a few minutes later. "It doesn't do much, the alien," he said moving back to give them room. "It's weird. It's kind of useless. It's just like this great big pepper pot."

The Emissary's face darkened as she watched the Dalek on the screen. Some scientist was trying to drill through its casing, making it screech.

Rose gasped. "It's being tortured!" She glanced at Adam. "Where's the Doctor?"

"I don't know," Adam answered.

Rose straightened, grabbing the Emissary's wrist. "Take us down there now."

"No." The Emissary pulled her wrist out of Rose's grasp. "We're staying right here."

Rose rolled her eyes. "The Doctor would want this to stop!"

"Oh, believe me, he would rather it dead," the Emissary said darkly. "Either way, he's not here and I'm the only other one who knows what that alien is, so I'm in charge. We're staying here." Rose glared.

"Look, I don't know who you think you are," she started angrily, "but the Doctor would never want anything to die! I've been traveling with him while you stayed on Earth, and I think I know what he'd do!" Rose turned to a wide eyed Adam. "Take me down there."

Adam nodded, Rose followed him out of the room. The Emissary shook her head and followed.

She wasn't about to let Rose get herself killed.

~~~

The Doctor followed Van Statten and Goddard into a lift. "The metal's just battle armour," he explained. "The real Dalek creature's inside."

"What does it look like?" Van Statten asked. The Doctor scowled.

"A nightmare," he said. "It's a mutation. The Dalek race was genetically engineered. Every single emotion was removed except hate."

"Genetically engineered," Van Statten mused. "By whom?"

The Doctor scowled. "By a genius, Van Statten. By a man who was king of his own little world." He eyed Van Statten. "You'd like him." The lift doors dinged open and they stepped off the lift and started down the hallway.

"It's been on Earth for over fifty years," Goddard told him. "Sold at a private auction, moving from one collection to another. Why would it be a threat?"

"Because I'm here," the Doctor answered matter-of-factly. He brushed away the thought that the Emissary would roll her eyes at his words and looked over at Goddard. "How did it get to Earth? Does anyone know?"

Goddard tapped on her tablet. "The records say it came from the sky like a meteorite. It fell to Earth on the Ascension Islands. Burnt in its crater for three days before anybody could get near it and all that time it was screaming. It must have gone insane."

"It must have fallen through time," the Doctor thought aloud. "The only survivor."

"You talked about a war?" Goddard asked.

"The Time War," the Doctor nodded. "The final battle between my people and the Dalek race."

"But you survived too," Van Statten pointed out, sharing a look with Goddard.

"Not by choice," the Doctor muttered. He missed Van Statten's sly smile.

"This means that the Dalek isn't the only alien on Earth," Van Statten said, motioning to guards. "Doctor, there's you. The only one of your kind in existence."

The Doctor barely had time to think that the Emissary had also survived before he was knocked out.

~~~

When he came to, the Doctor found himself strapped to a table, half naked and spread eagled. Van Statten stood in front of a laser.

"Now, smile!" he ordered. He turned the laser on and scanned it down the Doctor's body. The Doctor bit back a scream at the sudden pain. Van Statten looked down at the screen of the laser and grinned madly at what he saw. "Two hearts! Binary vascular system. Oh, I am so going patent this."

The Doctor grimaced. "So that's your secret. You don't just collect this stuff you scavenge it."

Van Statten rolled his eyes. "This technology has been falling to Earth for centuries. All it took was the right mind to use it properly." He grinned. "Oh, the advances I've made from alien junk. You have no idea, Doctor. Broadband? Roswell. Just last year my scientists cultivated bacteria from the Russian crater, and do you know what we found? The cure for the common cold. Kept it strictly within the laboratory of course. No need to get people excited. Why sell one cure when I can sell a thousand palliatives?"

The Doctor shook his head, disgusted. "Do you know what a Dalek is, Van Statten? A Dalek is honest. It does what it was born to do for the survival of its species. That creature in your dungeon is better than you."

Van Statten fixed him with a flat stare. "In that case, I will be true to myself and continue."

"Listen to me!" the Doctor yelled. "That thing downstairs is going to kill every last one of us!" He cut off with a pained groan as Van Statten scanned him again.

"Nothing can escape the Cage," Van Statten insisted. The Doctor rolled his eyes.

"But it's woken up," he explained slowly. "It knows I'm here, it's going to get out. Van Statten, I swear, no one on this base is safe. No one on this planet!" Van Statten rolled his eyes and scanned him again.

~~~

"Hold it right there." The guard at the Cage stopped the three from going in. Adam fumbled with his id for a moment.

"Level three access," he said. "Special clearance from Mister Van Statten." The guard eyed them for a moment before letting them in. Inside the Cage was dark, but for a single spotlight on the Dalek. Rose stepped forward.

"Don't get too close," he told Rose.

"Hello," she called. "Are you in pain?" Silence. The Emissary and Adam stayed back near the door. "My name's Rose Tyler. I've got a friend, he can help. He's called the Doctor." The Ambassador snorted despite herself, and Rose threw her a sharp glare. "What's your name?"

A cold robotic voice answered. "Yes."

"What?"

"I am in pain," the Dalek answered. "They torture me but still they fear me. Do you fear me?"

Rose shook her head. "No."

"I am dying," said the Dalek. Rose shook her head, stepping even closer. The Emissary followed behind her, ready to pull her back if needed.

"No, we can help," Rose insisted.

"I welcome death," came the response. "But I am glad that before I die, I have met a human who was not afraid."

"Isn't there anything I can do?"

"My race is dead and I shall die alone." The Emissary swallowed the angry words she wanted to say and looked back at the door, signaling to Adam to open it. His eyes filled with panic and he lunged forward.

"Rose, no!" The Emissary whipped around to see Rose pulling her hand back from a golden handprint on the Dalek's casing. She grabbed Rose's wrist and pulled her back hard.

"Ow!" Rose said, glaring at her. The Emissary ignored her.

"We need to go," she said. "Now."

"Genetic material extrapolated. Initiate cellular reconstruction!"

"What the hell have you done?" cried a technician rushing in. The Emissary pushed past, dragging Rose along. Adam quickly followed. The door slammed shut on the technician's screams.

Rose pulled out of the Emissary's grasp. "It's killing him! Do something!"

"I am," the Emissary snapped, taking Rose's wrist and pulling her along again. "The only thing we can do for him now is not waste his sacrifice and use the time he's costing the Dalek to run!" Rose stared. "People are going to die, Rose, they were the moment you touched the Dalek and there's nothing we can do but run and try to find the Doctor!"

Adam looked between them. "Sorry, Rose, but I'm going to go with her," he said. "That thing just killed Simmons!"

He had a point. Rose swallowed heavily. "This is my fault, I have to try to help." She stepped away from the Emissary. "Run if you want, but I'm staying."

The Emissary sighed. "Oh Rose." Adam looked at her.

"Are we not running?"

"Save yourself, Adam," the Emissary said. "My priority is Rose." Adam took off while Rose stared at the Emissary. "I'm not going to let you die, Rose."

~~~

The Doctor and Van Statten looked up as alarms started blaring. The Doctor looked Van Statten in the eye.

"Release me if you want to live."

~~~

In the office, the chaos in the Cage was being projected on a large tv. The Doctor stood in front of it, face grim. "You've got to keep it in that cell," he ordered. Rose's face was pale.

"Doctor, it's all my fault," she said. The Doctor ignored her, looking at the guard.

"I've sealed the compartment," the guard said. "It can't get out, that lock's got a billion combinations."

"A Dalek is a genius," The Doctor said. "It can calculate a thousand billion combinations in one second flat."

The Emissary eyed the keypad and numbers began to flash. Within seconds the door was opening. She grabbed Rose's wrist. "Right, now we run." She glanced at the Doctor. "See you soon." She took off, dragging Rose with her. Seconds later, the Dalek broke free.

~~~

As the screams of the soldiers rang out behind them, the Emissary kept running, Rose stumbling along behind her.

Finally, Rose jerked her hand out of the Emissary's . "I can run by myself, thanks."

"If that Dalek catches you," the Emissary told her, "it will try to kill you."

They caught up to Adam a few moments later. He glanced at where Rose was beginning to lag behind. "I thought you decided to stay behind," he remarked. The Emissary just looked at him.

"Staying behind," she said slowly, "would be a death sentence. I'm not letting Rose die." A guard ran up behind them.

"I'm De Maggio, I'm gonna get you all out of here," she said, sounding out of breath. "Now, let's get a move on."

~~~

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief as Rose and the Emissary disappeared off screen.

Goddard's panicked voice sounded behind him and he tensed. "We're losing power. It's draining the base." She paused. "Oh, my god. It's draining entire power supplies for the whole of Utah."

The Doctor's voice was grim as he joined her at the computer. "It's downloading."

"Downloading what?" Van Statten asked. The Doctor's face was grim as Goddard interrupted.

"Sir, the entire West Coast has gone down."

"It's not just energy," the Doctor informed Van Statten. "That Dalek just absorbed the entire internet. It knows everything."

"The cameras in the vault have gone down," Goddard informed Van Statten. The Doctor turned to him, irritated.

"We've only got emergency power. It's eaten everything else. You've got to kill it now!" He was vaguely aware of Goddard in the background as he stared down Van Statten.

"All guards to converge in the Metaltron cage, immediately."

~~~

The Emissary groaned as several guards came round the corner they were approaching. The guard that was with them began to yell.

"Civilians! Let them through!"

The guards hit the walls just long enough for the group to pass, then the commander began shouting orders. "Cover the north wall. Red division, maintain suppressing fire along the perimeter. Blue divisi-argh!"

The Emissary glanced back and immediately wished she hadn't. The bright flash and brief visual of skeleton was a harsh and sudden reminder of her time on the front lines. The other guards opened fire, but it was no use. The Dalek just absorbed the bullets, shooting another guard in the process. The Emissary swallowed hard and ran to catch up with the others, leaving the guards to their fate. She couldn't stop it anyhow.

~~~

"Tell them to stop shooting at it!" Van Statten demanded. Goddard's face was incredulous when she looked at him.

"But it's killing them!"

"They're dispensable," Van Statten spat. "That Dalek is unique." He grabbed the microphone. "I don't want a scratch on its bodywork, do you hear me? Do you hear me?"

There was no answer. At the same time, the video feed went silent. The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment. "There's no use, Van Statten." Both humans looked at him. "Your guards are dead."

After a long moment, Goddard pulled up schematics of the base. "That's us," she said, pointing at a blip on the screen, "right below the surface. That's the cage, and that's the Dalek."

"This museum of yours," the Doctor asked her. "Have you got any alien weapons?"

"Lots of them," she replied, "but the trouble is the Dalek's between us and them." Van Statten cut off the Doctor's reply.

"We've got to keep that thing alive." The Doctor gave him a flat, unimpressed look. "We could just seal the entire vault, trap it down there."

"Leaving everyone trapped with it?" Van Statten nodded. The Doctor's voice took on a threatening edge. "Rose is down there. The Emissary is down there. I won't let that happen. Have you got that?" With that, he turned back to Goddard. "It's got to go through this area. What's that?"

Goddard looked where he was pointing. "Weapons testing."

The Doctor nodded. "Give guns to the technicians, the lawyers, anyone. Everyone," he ordered. "Only then have you got a chance of killing it."

~~~

The Emissary nearly smacked into Rose as she stopped short. "Stairs!" Rose said breathlessly. "That's more like it. It hasn't got legs. It's stuck!"

De Maggio was right behind them. "It's coming! Get up!"

They all ran up one flight and then stopped. The Emissary shook her head. "We need to keep moving." She was ignored in favor of looking down at the Dalek.

Adam smirked. "Great big alien death machine, defeated by a flight of stairs." The Emissary's hand hit her face.

"Don't challenge it, you idiot," she said. Adam ignored her. The Emissary moved closer to Rose, ready to grab her and run.

"Now listen to me," De Maggio started, her voice commanding. "I demand that you return to your cage. If you want to negotiate then I can guarantee that Mister van Statten will be willing to talk. I accept that we imprisoned you and maybe that was wrong, but people have died, and that stops right now. The killing stops. Have you got that? I demand that you surrender. Is that clear?"

"Daleks don't negotiate," said the Emissary. "It will never stop killing." De Maggio glanced at her.

"Have to try, right?"

"Elevate." The Dalek began to float up the stairs.

"Oh my God," Rose gasped. The Emissary began to pull her up the stairs, motioning for Adam to start moving.

"Time to go."

Rose reached for De Maggio. "Come with us," she said. "You can't stop it."

"Someone's got to try." De Maggio nodded at the Emissary's solemn face. "Now get out! Don't look back. Just run."

The Emissary let Rose run past her as she turned to De Maggio. "Your best bet is the eyestalk," she said quickly. "Hit it there and run like hell." De Maggio nodded and the Emissary left. As she caught up with Rose, she heard De Maggio scream.

~~~

"I thought you were the great expert, Doctor. If you're so impressive, then why not just reason with this Dalek?" The Doctor have him no reaction. "It must be willing to negotiate. There must be something it needs. Everything needs something."

"What's the nearest town?" the Doctor asked.

"Salt Lake City."

"Population?"

"One million."

"All dead." Van Statten just stared. "If the Dalek gets out, it'll murder every living creature. That's all it needs."

"But why would it do that?!" Van Statten spluttered.

The Doctor met his eyes. "Because it honestly believes they should die. Human beings are different, and anything different is wrong. It's the ultimate in racial cleansing and you, Van Statten, you've let it loose!"

~~~

Soldiers flooded into the loading bay as the Doctor spoke to the commander from the office. "The Dalek's surrounded by a force field," he informed. "The bullets are melting before they even hit home. But it's not indestructible. If you concentrate your fire, you might get through. Aim for the dome, the head, the eyepiece. That's the weak spot."

As his men got into position, the commander replied. "Thank you, Doctor, but I think I know how to fight one single tin robot. Positions!"

Footsteps echoed down the hall as Adam, Rose and the Emissary ran into the bay.

"Hold your fire!" the commander yelled. "You three, get the hell out of there!"

The trio ran past the last guard just as the Dalek came round the corner. Rose stopped and looked back. The Dalek looked right at her but before she could do anything Adam was pulling her away.

"It was looking at me," she said.

Adam looked at her like she was insane. "Yeah, it wants to slaughter us."

"I know," Rose said, "but it was looking right at me."

"So? It's just a sort of metal eye thing. It's looking all around."

"I don't know," Rose argued. "It's like there's something inside, looking at me, like, like it knows me."

The Emissary shrugged. "There is something inside."

"And what's that?" Adam asked sarcastically. "A bunch of wires?"

"A nightmare," the Emissary corrected. She leaned against the wall. "Daleks were genetically engineered from their creator's own people. All it can do is hate and destroy." She started down the hall again. "If it was looking at you, Rose, it's because it wants to kill you." She glanced over her shoulder at the two frozen humans. "Let's not make it easy, yeah?"

~~~

In the office, Goddard got the Doctor's attention. "We've got vision."

"It wants us to see." He straightened up to stare at the wall monitor, watching as the Dalek systematically executed every single soldier. The Doctor looked away. After a moment, Van Statten spoke up from his corner.

"Perhaps it's time for a new strategy. Maybe we should consider abandoning this place."

Goddard didn't bother to hide her disdain. "Except there's no power to the helipad, sir. We can't get out."

The Doctor looked at them. "You said we could seal the vault."

Van Statten nodded, walking over to the computer. "It was designed to be a bunker in the event of nuclear war. Steel bulkheads."

"There's not enough power," Goddard reminded them. "Those bulkheads are massive."

"We've got emergency power. We can re-route that to the bulkhead doors."

"We'd have to bypass the security codes. That would take a computer genius."

"Good thing you've got me, then," Van Statten said. The Doctor looked down at him incredulously.

"You want to help?"

"I don't want to die, Doctor," he corrected. "Simple as that. And nobody knows this software better than me."

The Dalek suddenly showed up on the wall monitor. Goddard was the first to notice. "Sir."

Both men look. "I shall speak only to the Doctor."

The Doctor left Van Statten to his work and walked over. "You're going to get rusty."

"I fed off the DNA of Rose Tyler," the Dalek informed him. "Extrapolating the biomass of a time traveller regenerated me."

"What's your next trick?"

"I have been searching for the Daleks."

"Yeah, I saw," the Doctor reminded it, "downloading the internet. What did you find?"

"I scanned your satellites and radio telescopes."

"And?"

"Nothing." If he didn't know better, the Doctor would say the Dalek looked lost. "Where shall I get my orders now?"

"You're just a soldier without commands."

"Then I shall follow the Primary Order, the Dalek instinct to destroy, to conquer."

The Doctor sighed heavily. "What for? What's the point?" There was a pause. "Don't you see it's all gone? Everything you were, everything you stood for."

"Then what should I do?"

Well, if the Dalek wanted orders, the Doctor wouldn't refuse. "All right, then. If you want orders, follow this one." He didn't even have to think about it. "Kill yourself."

"The Daleks must survive!"

"The Daleks have failed!" he yelled, nearly spitting the words. "Why don't you finish the job and make the Daleks extinct. Rid the Universe of your filth. Why don't you just die?"

He waited, breathing hard, for the Dalek's response. "You would make a good Dalek." The screen went black.

The words were like a shot to his hearts. Neither human said a word, just staring at the Doctor. He sighed heavily and didn't meet their eyes.

"Seal the Vault."

Van Statten got to work. "I can leech power off the ground defences, feed it to the bulkheads." He smiled as he typed. "God, it's been years since I had to work this fast."

The Doctor eyed him. "Are you enjoying this?"

"Doctor," Goddard interrupted whatever the reply might have been, "they're still down there."

The Doctor picked up a phone.

~~~

Rose grumbled as her phone began to ring. Fumbling as she ran, she pulled it out and answered. "This isn't the best time," she panted.

"Where are you?" the Doctor asked her. She looked up at the label on the wall as they passed.

"Level forty nine."

"You've got to keep moving," he told her. Rose almost rolled her eyes. Really, like she was going to stop and let the Dalek have her. "The vault's being sealed off up at level forty six."

Oh. "Can't you stop them closing?" Rose asked.

"I'm the one who's closing them," he said. "I can't wait and I can't help you." Rose put on a renewed burst of speed. "Now for God's sake, run." He hung up. Rose shoved her phone in her pocket. Ahead of them, Adam sped up as if he knew it was urgent.

The Emissary glanced back. "Is that the Doctor? What did he want?"

Rose didn't answer for a moment as she picked up speed. "He's sealing the vault at level forty six."

A moment later Van Statten leaned back from the keyboard. The Doctor and Goddard looked at him. "Done it," he said. "We've got power to the bulkheads."

Goddard surveyed the screen. "The Dalek's right behind them," she said. The Doctor picked up the phone and dialed Rose again. She answered after a few seconds.

"We're nearly there," she panted. "Give us two seconds." The Emissary eyed the bulkhead, trying to gauge the distance. It was closing too fast.

"Doctor, I can't sustain the power," Van Statten said. "The whole system is failing. Doctor, you've got to close the bulkheads."

The Doctor hesitated for a moment before he closed his eyes. "I'm sorry," he told Rose, then hung up. He hit the enter key.

Down on level forty six, the Emissary winced as loud klaxons began to ring. Adam, several feet ahead of them, put on a burst of speed. "Come on!" He dove under the descending bulkhead and turned back. "Come on!"

The Emissary looked at the foot and a half of space left and grabbed Rose, throwing her under. Rose shrieked, phone clattering to the ground as she rolled under and came to a stop on the other side. She looked back, horrified eyes meeting the Emissary's as the bulkhead closed.

~~~

"The vault is sealed," Van Statten said as the alarms quieted. The Doctor picked up the phone again.

"Rose, where are you?" he asked as soon as she answered. For a moment, all he heard were footsteps as someone approached the phone. "Rose, did you make it?"

It wasn't Rose's voice that answered. "She made it," the Emissary said. "I was a bit slow, myself."

The Doctor blanched. "Emissary, I-"

She cut him off. "It's okay, Doctor. It's my own fault." She swallowed hard as the Dalek rounded the corner and began to approach her. "Rose is your priority. It's okay." She hesitated for a moment, then forged ahead. "I'm glad I got to see you again, I really am."

The Doctor closed his eyes, hearing the Dalek screech "Exterminate!" There was a zap and the line went dead. He dropped the phone.

"I killed her." His voice was hollow.

"I'm sorry," Van Statten said. The Doctor spun and glared at him.

"She was all I had left," he snarled. "She was only here because of me, and you're sorry? I could've killed that Dalek in it's cell, but you stopped me."

"It was the prize of my collection!" Van Statten cried. Goddard shook her head and moved away from him, seeing the dangerous look on the Doctor's face.

"Your collection?!" He laughed bitterly, beginning to pace. "But was it worth it? Worth all those men's deaths? Worth the Emissary? Let me tell you something, Van Statten." He stopped in front of the man. "Mankind goes into space to explore, to be part of something greater."

Van Statten interrupted. "Exactly! I wanted to touch the stars!" He flinched as the Doctor slammed his hands down on the desk and leaned close.

"You just want to drag the stars down and stick them underground, underneath tons of sand and dirt, and label them!" the Doctor spat. "You're about as far from the stars as you can get. And you took her down with you. The last Time Lady." He turned away from Van Statten, shaking his head. "She was all I had left."

~~~

Down in the vault, the Emissary stared first at the Dalek, then the scorch mark on the bulkhead door. "You missed." She looked back at the Dalek. "How the hell did you miss?"

"I am armed," the Dalek said. "I will kill. It is my purpose."

"Go on, then," the Emissary invited. "Kill me like you killed all the others."

"They are dead because of us." The Emissary's brow furrowed. "Rose Tyler and the Daleks."

"She didn't know what she was doing," the Emissary defended. Then she smirked, thinking of something. "You only regenerated yourself because of Rose's DNA. That makes you part human." She lifted hands that were sparking with artron energy. "I should tear you apart on principle," she said. "My people are dead because of your race."

"I feel your pain." The Emissary paused, looking confused. Her hands fell.

"What?"

"Daleks do not feel pain," it said, shooting the door on either side of her. She flinched. "Must not feel pain."

"Rose Tyler gave me life," it screeched, waving its plunger around. "What else has she given me? I am contaminated."

~~~

The lift dinged and the Doctor turned to see Rose running out. He hugged her tightly.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I wasn't fast enough, she sacrificed herself to save me."

"It's not your fault," he told her. He waited until Rose stepped away to glare full force at Adam. "You were quick on your feet, leaving Rose and the Emissary behind."

"I'm not the one who sealed the vault!" Adam retorted. The Doctor opened his mouth, ready to tear into him, when Rose gasped. He turned to look at the screen.

There was the Dalek, and beside it stood the Emissary, looking like she was seconds away from tearing it apart. "Open the bulkhead or the Emissary dies."

Staring in shock, the Doctor could only say one thing. "You're alive!"

"Can't get rid of me that easy," she shrugged. He took note of the fact that her hands were flickering with blue and wondered why she hadn't just killed the Dalek.

"I thought you were dead." She gave him an exasperated look and seconds later, he felt her mind brush against his.

Don't you think if I was dead, she began, sounding amused, you would have been able to feel it?

The Dalek began to screech impatiently. "Open the bulkhead!"

The Emissary glared at it. "Don't do it!"

"What use are emotions if you will not save the woman you care for?" The Doctor closed his eyes and shook his head.

"I killed her once," he said, more to Rose, than anyone else. "I can't do it again." He pressed the button and the screen went black.

"What do we do now, you bleeding heart," Van Statten sneered. "What the hell do we do?"

Adam shrugged. "Kill it when it gets here."

"All the guns are useless," Goddard informed them, "and the alien weapons are in the vault."

Adam began to grin. "Only the catalogued ones."

~~~

Down in the lab, the Doctor sorted through chunks of metal. "Broken. Broken." He tossed several things over his shoulder. "Hairdryer."

Adam came up next to him. He didn't look at him, still peeved that he was so ready to leave the girls to die. Adam glanced at him. "Mister Van Statten tends to dispose of his staff," he said, "and when he does he wipes their memory. I kept this stuff in case I needed to fight my way out one day."

"What, you in a fight?" the Doctor snorted. "I'd like to see that."

"I could do."

"What're you going to do, throw your A-Levels at 'em?" The Doctor lifted up a huge gun. "Oh, yes. Lock and load."

~~~

The Emissary sighed as the bulkhead began to open. "You don't have to kill them," she said, as they moved toward the lift. "You didn't kill me."

"But why not?" the Dalek screeched. "Why are you alive? My function is to kill. What am I? What am I?"

The Emissary rolled her eyes and stepped into the lift. She was not paid enough to deal with a Dalek's identity crisis.

"Don't move," she ordered the room as soon as the lift opened in the office. "Don't do anything. It's beginning to question itself, and that might just get you out alive."

The Dalek looked at Van Statten. "Van Statten. You tortured me. Why?"

Van Statten looked at the Emissary for help. She stared back impassively, then turned and went over to Rose's side. "I wanted to help you," he stammered. "I just, I don't know. I was trying to help. I thought if we could get through to you, if we could mend you. I wanted you better. I'm sorry." The Dalek rolled up to him, pushing him back against the wall. "I'm so sorry! I swear, I just wanted you to talk!"

"Then hear me talk now," the Dalek screeched. "Exterminate! Exterminate! Exterminate!"

Rose stepped past the Emissary. "Don't do it!" She shifted as the Dalek turned to her. "Don't kill him! You don't have to do this anymore. There must be something else, not just killing. What else is there? What do you want?" The Emissary leaned forward, interested in the answer.

The Dalek paused. "I want freedom."

"What?" the Emissary asked. "You know I'm not letting you out of this bunker." Rose gave the Emissary a look.

"We can take it to the top level," she insisted. "It's changed."

"Dalek's don't change, Rose," the Emissary sighed, but she was already heading for the lift. "Fine, but you're staying here."

"Like hell I am." Rose pushed her way onto the lift with the two aliens.

The Emissary stared up at the ceiling. "Rassilon, you're stubborn."

~~~

When they reached the top level, the Dalek rolled out first. The Emissary kept a grip on Rose's wrist, ready to pull her back if the Dalek shot.

Instead, the Dalek aimed at the ceiling and shot a hole in it. A shaft of sunlight flooded in and lit up the entire loading bay.

"You're out," Rose told it. "You made it." She looked up at the sky and smiled. "I never thought I'd feel the sunlight again."

"How does it feel?" the Dalek asked. The Emissary looked back at the Dalek in shock as it began to open its casing. She stepped in front of Rose as the mutant inside was revealed.

"Get out of the way!" Both women whipped around at the Doctor's voice. The Emissary immediately stepped aside, but Rose dug in her heels. "Rose, get out of the way now!"

"No," she said firmly. "I won't let you do this."

"That thing killed hundreds of people," he reminded her. She scoffed.

"It's not the one pointing the gun at me."

"That's not fair and you know it," the Emissary told her. "We have a history with Daleks."

"I've got to do this," the Doctor agreed. "I've got to end it. The Daleks destroyed our home, our people. We've got nothing left."

Rose moved aside to show the Doctor the Dalek. "Look at it."

"What's it doing?"

The Emissary sighed, rubbing her temples. "Apparently the sunlight is all it wants."

The Doctor stared at her. "But it can't-"

Rose gave both Time Lords a look. "It couldn't kill Van Statten, it couldn't kill you, Emissary. It's changing." She glared at the gun the Doctor was holding. "What about you, Doctor? What the hell are you changing into?"

He looked down and dropped the gun. The Emissary stepped up next to him, laying one hand on his shoulder. "I couldn't, I wasn't." He sighed heavily, meeting her eyes. "Oh, Emissary. They're all dead."

"Why do we survive?" the Dalek asked, making all three look at it.

The Doctor answered. "I don't know."

"I am the last of the Daleks."

The Emissary shook her head. "You're not even that," she reminded it. "Rose did more than regenerate you. You've absorbed her DNA. You're mutating."

"Into what?"

"Something new," the Doctor shrugged. "I'm sorry."

Rose looked confused. "Isn't that better?"

"Not for a Dalek."

"I can feel so many ideas," the Dalek said. "So much darkness. Rose, give me orders. Order me to die."

Rose blanched. "I can't do that."

"This is not life," the Dalek began to screech. "This is sickness. I shall not be like you. Order my destruction! Obey! Obey! Obey!"

Rose looked at the Time Lords, who just nodded. She swallowed and turned back. "Do it."

"Are you frightened, Rose Tyler?"

Rose nodded. "Yeah."

"So am I. Exterminate." The Dalek shut its eye. The Emissary pulled Rose back to them as it closed up its armour again and began to rise. They watched as the balls flew off the armour and surrounded the Dalek, creating a bubble to contain the blast.

The Dalek imploded.

~~~

The trio was quiet as they reentered the museum. "A little piece of home," the Doctor said to the Emissary, patting the TARDIS. "Better than nothing."

Rose piped up hesitantly. "Is that the end of it, the Time War?"

The Doctor nodded. "We're the only ones left. We win. How about that?"

Rose gave a weak smile. "That Dalek survived. Maybe some of your people did too."

The Emissary shook her head. "We'd know," she said, tapping her temple. "We'd feel them in our minds." She sighed, dropping her hand. "The only one I can feel is him."

"Well then," Rose decided, "good thing I'm not going anywhere."

The Doctor met the Emissary's eyes. "Yeah."

Adam came up to them. "We'd better get out," he said to Rose, not seeming to notice the glared of the two aliens. "Van Statten's disappeared. They're closing down the base. Goddard says they're going to fill it full of cement, like it never existed."

Rose sighed in relief. "About time."

Adam paused, looking at her. "I'll have to go back home."

The Doctor cut off her reply. "Better hurry up then. Next flight to Heathrow leaves at fifteen hundred hours."

Rose met his eyes. "Adam was saying that all his life he wanted to see the stars."

"Tell him to look at the sky, then," the Emissary said. Something passed between her and the Doctor, then he turned and unlocked the TARDIS.

"He's all on his own, Doctor, and he did help," Rose continued. The Doctor turned and looked at her as the Emissary went inside.

"He left you both down there," he reminded her. She rolled her eyes.

"So did you."

Adam looked between them, a bit lost. "What're you talking about? We've got to leave."

The Doctor considered him. "Plus, he's a bit pretty."

Rose shook her head innocently. "I hadn't noticed."

The Doctor sighed, giving in. "On your own head." Rose grinned, tongue in teeth, at him.

"What're you doing?" Adam asked as they went inside. "She said cement. She wasn't joking. We're going to get sealed in." He followed them in. "Doctor? What're you doing standing inside a box? Rose?"

The door shut behind him, and the TARDIS took off.