The Doctor held me to him as we laid on the floor. Jumping to our feet, we hit the walls as the cupboard spun. "What is it? What's going on?" I asked him before he hit the door, falling face first out of the spinning room, me landing on top of him.

"Oh my God! I don't believe it! Why'd they put you in there? They never said you were coming."

"What happened? We were…"

I stood, helping the Doctor up as I tried to keep my balance. "Careful now," a girl in a pink shirt said to me as she held onto my arm. "Oh! Oh, mind yourselves!" she said as he fell again, pulling me with him. "Oh, that was the transmat. It scrambles your head. I was sick for days." She stopped talking and looked at our unsteady figures as we stood. "Alright? So, what's your name then, sweetheart?" she asked the Doctor. For some reason, her calling him sweetheart irritated me.

"The Doctor, I think. She's Cerys. We were, er. I don't know what happened? How-" He pulled me closer to him, trying to support himself as I did on the girl, although by then I had long pulled away from her.

"You got chosen."

"Chosen for what?"

"You're a housemate. You're in the house. Isn't that brilliant?!" I looked around. There was a pink screen with an eye on it and a man standing by in a matching pink shirt. He looked very unhappy.

"That's not fair. We've got eviction in five minutes! I've been here for all nine weeks. I've followed the rules, I haven't had a single warning, and then they come swanning in."

Another person joined us, a dark skinned woman with braids wearing the same pink shirt as the other two with her arms crossed. "If they keep changing the rules, I'm going to protest, I am. You watch me; I'm going to paint the walls." I looked around, seeing cameras, portraits, a television, a kitchen adjacent to the living room, and rooms to the side.

"Would the Doctor and Cerys please come to the Diary Room?" We looked at each other and with a shrug, we went through a metal door. In the middle was a big red chair against a black background. The Doctor dropped down in it while I sat on his lap. He glanced at me for a moment, an expression I thought was shock written on his face, but I rolled my eyes, not really caring about his disdain, or lack thereof. I wanted to know how we had gone from the library, in the Tardis, to wherever we were. "You are live on channel forty four thousand. Please do not swear."

"You have got to be kidding," we said at the same time.

I quickly stood and exited the room. The Doctor followed closely behind, his sonic screwdriver out and ready. He began to check out the place, walking around the room until he got to a door, sonicing it. "I can't open it."

"It's got a deadlock seal, ever since Big Brother five hundred and four when they all walked out. You must remember that."

"Big Brother? The show? Wait, five hundred and four? How long has this been running?" The people rolled their eyes at me. "I could have sworn I just asked a question. Maybe I'm going mad. But I thought-" The Doctor came over and put a hand over my mouth and dragged me over to an alcove he was examining.

"What about this?"

"Oh, that's exoglass. You'd need a nuclear bomb to get through."

"Don't tempt me.

"I know you're not supposed to talk about the outside world, but you must've been watching. Do people like me? Lynda. Lynda with a Y, not Linda with an I. She got forcibly evicted because she damaged the camera. Am I popular?"

He dropped his hand from my mouth, taking my hand instead. "I don't remember."

"Oh, but does that mean I'm nothing? Some people get this far just because they're insignificant. Doesn't anybody notice me?"

"No, you're, you're nice. You're sweet. Everybody thinks you're sweet."

"Oh, is that right? Is that what I am? Oh, no one's ever told me that before. Am I sweet? Really?"

I rolled my eyes at her, not that she noticed. Her attention was solely on him. The Doctor gave my hand a quick squeeze. "Yeah. Dead sweet."

Thank you."

"It's a wall. Isn't there supposed to be a garden out there or something?"

"Don't be daft. No one's got a garden anymore. Who's got a garden? Don't tell me you've got a garden."

"No, I've just got the Tardis. I remember."

"That's the amnesia! So what happened? Where did they get you?"

"We'd just left Raxacoriofallapatorius. Then we went to Kyoto. That's right, Japan in 1336, and we only just escaped."

"Because you angered some of Takauji's men."

"Cerys was upset too. She wanted a peaceful trip to her favorite time period. We were together, minus Cerys. We were laughing, and then I went to get her. We were in the library, and then there was this light. This white light coming through the walls, and then…"

"We woke up here," I finished.

"Yeah, that's the transmat beam. That's how they pick the housemates."

"Oh, Lynda with a Y. Sweet little Lynda. It's worse than that. I'm not just some passing traveler. No stupid little transmat gets inside my ship. That beam was fifteen million times more powerful, which means this isn't just a game. There's something else going on." He turned to talk to the cameras. "Well, here's the latest update from the Big Brother house. We're getting out. We're going to find our friends, and then I'm going to find you," he said, tapping the camera. I nodded after him. I wanted to find them as well and I was not getting left there with those people.

I stood by the Doctor as he continued his efforts to escape. As much as I wanted to help, there was nothing I could do. Instead I watched the other people in the house, hoping none of them would try to stop him. "Doctor, Cerys, they said all the housemates must gather on the sofa. You've got to," Lynda said from the sofa.

"I'm busy getting out, thanks."

"But if you don't obey, then all the housemates get punished." He stopped what he was doing and rolled his eyes, grabbing my hand and pulling me along with him as he walked over to the settee.

"Well, maybe we'll be voted out."

"How stupid are you? You've only just joined, you're not eligible," the man stated.

"Don't try anything clever or we all get it in the neck." The Doctor shrugged and pulled me down as he sat. I ended up on his lap again. As I moved to take the seat beside him, I felt his grip on my hand tighten a bit but he soon released it. Thinking it was just a figment of my imagination, I huffed out a small breath and got comfortable in the seat.

Suddenly a voice came on and the three grabbed hands, Crosbie grabbing the Doctor's. "Big Brother House this is, Davina Droid. Crosbie, Lynda and Strood, you have all been nominated for eviction. And the eighth person to be evicted from the Big Brother House is…" the voice paused, as if building up the suspense. "Crosbie!" He leaned back, his expression showing his boredom. I just sighed and waited for it all to be over.

"I'm sorry! Oh, I'm sorry! Sorry!"

"Oh, it should've been me. Oh, that's not fair, Crosbie love." The man and Lynda hugged the girl.

"Crosbie, you have ten seconds to make your farewells, and then we're going to get you."

"I won't forget you."

"I'm sorry I stole your soap."

"I don't mind, honestly."

"Thanks for the food. You're a smashing cook. Bless you."

"Crosbie, please leave the Big Brother House." A door to a white corridor opened. It had another door at the end of it.

"Bye, then. Bye, Lynda."

"Bye," Lynda said as an arch was made and Crosbie walked through. "I don't believe it. Crosbie."

"It's just a stupid game show," I said.

"She'll make a fortune on the outside. Sell her story, release a record, fitness video, all of that. She'll be laughing."

"What do you mean, on the outside?"

"Here we go," the man said as he and Lynda ran over to the sofa to watch Crosbie on the screen.

"What are they waiting for?"

"Why aren't they letting her through?"

"Stop it, it's not funny."

"Eviction in five, four, three, two, one." We watched as a beam came from the ceiling and struck Crosbie. After a bit, she vanished, leaving nothing behind.

"What was that?"

The Doctor sat up, interested and confused. "Disintegrator beam."

"She's been evicted. From life."

I stood up, my eyes ablaze. "Are you people insane?"

"You just step right into the disintegrator? Is it that important, getting your face on the telly? Is it worth dying for?"

"You're talking like we've got a choice!"

"But I thought you had to apply?"

"Don't be so stupid. That's how they played it centuries back."

I turned to the man. "If you don't have anything helpful to say, then shut up." He nodded and I turned to Lynda for her to continue.

"You get chosen whether you like it or not. Everyone on Earth is a potential contestant. The transmat beam picks you out at random. And it's nonstop. There are sixty Big Brother houses running all at once."

"Sixty?"

"They've had to cut back. It's not what it was."

"It's a charnel house! What about the winners? What do they get?"

"They get to live."

"Is that is?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, isn't that enough?"

"Doctor, Rose is out there! If anything she got caught in the transmat too. She's a contestant now."

"I know. Time we got out. That other contestant, er, Linda with an I. She was forcibly evicted for what?"

"Damage to property."

"What, like this?" he asked as he soniced a camera, destroying it. As he did that, I began to throw anything that could be broken.

"The Doctor and Cerys, you've broken the House Rules. Big Brother has no choice but to evict you." The Doctor smiled and pumped his fists in the air, standing. "You have ten seconds to make your farewells, and then we're going to get you!"

"That's more like it." He took my hand and we ran over to the door. "Come on then. Open up!"

"You're mad, the both of you. It's like you want to die."

"I reckon they're a plant. They were only brought in to stir things up."

"Again with the talking."

The door finally opened. "The Doctor and Cerys, please leave the Big Brother house."

We ran out to the corridor, standing in the middle, hand in hand. "Come on then, disintegrate us! Come on, what're you waiting for?" The Doctor leaned against the wall, his arms crossed around me.

"Eviction in five, four, three, two, one." As it hit one, the machine shut down.

"Ah, ha! I knew it! You see, someone brought me into this game. If they'd wanted me dead, they could've transmatted me into a volcano. They wanted me alive."

"Hmm, maybe the security isn't all that good."

"Are you following this? We're getting out." Just as he opened the door, Lynda opened the door on her end. "Come with us."

"We're not allowed."

"Stay in there, you've got a fifty-fifty chance of disintegration. Stay with me, I promise I'll get you out alive. Come on!"

"No, I can't. I can't."

"Lynda, you're sweet. From what I've seen of your world, do you think anyone votes for sweet?" I asked her. As much as I hated her giving him googly eyes, Lynda only had half a chance of surviving the game. If she was sweet, she'd most likely lose. The Doctor held his hand out to her. She looked back before grabbing it and running out with us.

When the door closed, the Doctor looked around. "Hold on. I've been here before. This is Satellite Five. No guards. That makes a change. You'd think a big business like Satellite Five would be armed to the teeth."

"Wait, the place you went to with Rose and Adam?"

"Yes," he answered as we went through another door.

"No one's called it Satellite Five in ages. It's the Game Station now. Hasn't been Satellite Five in about a hundred years."

"A hundred years exactly. It's the year two zero zero one zero zero. I was here before, floor one three nine. The Satellite was broadcasting news channels back then. Had a bit of trouble upstairs. Nothing too serious. Easy. Gave them a hand, home in time for tea." He walked around, turning things on and sonicing the walls.

"A hundred years ago? What, you were here a hundred years ago?"

"Yep!"

"You're looking good on it."

"I moisturize." He shot her a cheeky grin.

"Don't. I'm still a bit upset over that."

"What for?" I cocked my head to the side. Rose and I had told him all about our conversation with Cassandra. "Oh, right. Well, that's in the future."

"We're on the same satellite too."

He nodded. "Anyways, funny sorts of readings. All kinds of energy. The place is humming. It's weird. This goes way beyond normal transmissions. What would they need all that power for?" We walked over to another door, the Doctor placing his hand on a security pad.

"I don't know. I think we're the first ever contestants to get outside."

"I had two other friends travelling with me. They must've got caught in the same transmat. Where would they be?"

"I don't know. They could've been allocated anywhere. There's a hundred different games."

"Like?"

"Well, there's ten floors of Big Brother. There's a different House behind each of those doors. And then beyond that, there's all sorts of shows. It's nonstop. There's Call My Bluff, with real guns. Countdown, where you've got thirty seconds to stop the bomb going off. Ground Force, which is a nasty one. You get turned into compost. Er, Wipeout, speaks for itself. Oh, and Stars In Their Eyes. Literally, stars in their eyes. If you don't sing, you get blinded."

"And you watch this stuff?"

"Everyone does. How come you don't?"

"Never paid for our licenses."

"Oh my God! You get executed for that."

"Let them try," he said, holding up the sonic screwdriver.

"You keep saying things that don't make sense. Who are you though, Doctor, really?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Well, it does to me. I've just put my life in your hands."

"I'm just a traveler, wandering past. Believe it or not, all I'm after is a quiet life."

"So, if we get out of here, what're you going to do? Just wander off again?"

"Fast as we can."

"So, I could come with you?"

"Maybe you could."

"I wouldn't get in the way."

"I wouldn't mind if you did." I rolled my eyes and walked away, pretending I was examining something. "Not a bad idea, Lynda with a Y. But first of all, we've got to concentrate on the getting out. And to do that, you've got to know your enemy. Who's controlling it? Who's in charge of the satellite now?"

"Hold on." She scampered past me and found a switch. Turning it on, a sign lit up saying Bad Wolf Corporation. "Your lords and masters." I glanced at it, remembering all the times those two words-Bad Wolf- came up. The Doctor came over to me, putting an arm around my shoulder as he led me to the observation deck. "Blimey! I've never seen it for real before. Not from orbit… planet Earth."

"What's happened to it?" he asked, looking down. I did as well and gasped. Earth was no longer blue and green but a white, with red spots in certain parts.

"Well, it's always been like that ever since I was born. See that there? That's the Great Atlantic Smog Storm. It's been going twenty years. We get newsflashes telling us when it's safe to breathe outside."

"So the population just sits there? Half the world's too fat, and half the world's too thin, and you lot just watch telly?"

"Ten thousand channels, all beaming down from here."

"The Human Race. Brainless sheep being fed on a diet of. Mind you, have they still got that program where three people have to live with a bear?"

"Oh, Bear With Me. I love that one!"

"And me. The celebrity edition where the bear got in the bath."

"Got in the bath!"

"Not the time," I reminded them.

"But it's all gone wrong," he replied, getting serious after my input. "I mean, history's gone wrong again. This should be the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire. I don't understand. Last time I was here I put it right."

"No, but that's when it first went wrong. A hundred years ago, like you said. All the news channels, they just shut down overnight."

"But that was me. I did that."

"There was nothing left in their place. No information. The whole planet just froze. The government, the economy, they collapsed. That was the start of it. One hundred years of hell."

"Oh my… I made this world." I squeezed him a bit, offering him some comfort.

As we stood there looking down at Earth, I heard footsteps. Turning around, a huge smile graced my face when I saw it was Jack. "Hey, handsome, beautiful. Good to see you two. Any sign of Rose?"

I pulled from the Doctor to give Jack a hug. Letting go, I took in his appearance. "Loving the outfit. Nice gun."

"Thanks."

"Can't you track her down?" the Doctor asked, interrupting us.

"She must still be inside the games. All the rooms are shielded."

"If I can just get inside this computer. She's got to be in here somewhere."

"Well, you better hurry up. These games don't have a happy ending."

"We know," I said before the Doctor could. I could sense his growing irritation and I didn't feel like having to calm him down. Jack looked at me as he removed his wrist computer and handed it to the Doctor.

"There you go, patch that in. It's programmed to find her." He handed the Doctor his wrist thing.

"Thanks."

Jack then turned his attention to Lynda. "Hey, there."

"Hello."

"Captain Jack Harkness."

"Lynda Moss."

"Nice to meet you, Lynda Moss."

"Do you mind flirting outside?"

"I was just saying hello! Besides, you flirt with Cerys."

"For you, that's flirting," the Doctor said, completely ignoring his second sentence.

"I'm not complaining."

"Muchas gracias."

"It's not compatible. This stupid system doesn't make sense." He gave the computer to Lynda and kicked the console, coming to stand by me after his small tantrum. A moment after he'd calmed, he and Jack pulled off the front plate. "This place should be a basic broadcaster, but the systems are twice as complicated. It's more than just television. This station's transmitting something else."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. This whole Bad Wolf thing's tied up with me. Someone's manipulated my entire life. It's some sort of trap and Rose is stuck inside it."

I stood there thinking for a bit about that. If that were true, why would they involve Rose and me? I shook my head. "No, this isn't just about you, Doctor. Rose and I were dragged into this but it's been going on for a while. It involves the three of us."

He nodded and walked back to the computer. "Found her. Floor four oh seven."

"Oh my God, she's with the Anne Droid. You've got to get her out of there." The four of us ran to the lift, pressing the button.

"Come on! Hurry up!"

When it finally came, we piled in. The Doctor soniced the panel so that the elevator would get to 407 faster. After about a minute, it stopped and the doors opened, we ran out, frantically looking for the room Rose was in. "Game Room Six, which one is it?"

"Right here!" I called.

The other three came over. Jack got out his gun, aiming it at the door. "Stand back, let me blast it."

I backed away but the Doctor didn't. "You can't. It's made of Hydra combination." He went over to the lock and started to work on it. "Come on. Come on."

"Doctor…"

"I know, Cerys." A moment later, the door opened and we all ran into the room.

"Rose!"

"Stop this game!"

"Rose, you leave this life with nothing," the Anne Droid said.

"Stop this game!"

"I order you to stop this game!"

"You are the weakest link."

"Look out for the Anne Droid. It's armed!" Rose yelled as she ran to us. Just as she reached us, it shot her, leaving nothing but dust.

I stared at it, tears in my eyes. "What the hell did you do to her?" I heard Jack ask. I walked over to the pile and knelt down, allowing my tears to fall before I stood. If she was gone, I had nothing left to lose. I looked around, watching as Jack tried to fight off the oncoming guards. "Leave her alone!" he yelled as one grabbed me. On autopilot, I grabbed his hand and threw him to the floor, punching him, once he had hit. As more came to me, I quickly and easily took them out, not caring how badly I injured them or how hurt I ended up. I didn't notice them taking the Doctor. All I could hear were Jack's angry yells. "You killed her! You're stupid freaking game show killed her!"

Just as an officer grabbed my shoulder, I twisted out of the grip and into another. Soon I had four guards holding me. "I'm arresting you under the Private Legislation Sixteen of the Game Station Syndicate." One said as the four escorted me out of the room, with the Doctor and Jack following with their own guards.

After a while, we were all sitting in a cell. Although Jack, the Doctor, and Lynda were free to use their hands, I was handcuffed and chained to a bar. "Can you tell us the purpose of this device, sir? Can you tell us how you got on board?"

"Just leave him alone," Lynda said.

The man snapped around, grabbing her by the jaw. "I'm asking him." He released her jaw and turned back to the Doctor. "Sir? Can you tell us who you are?" The Doctor remained silent. The guard sighed and reached for Jack, taking him away for a few minutes. The same was done with Lydia and the Doctor. When it came time for me, two guards roughly grabbed me and led me to have my mug shot taken. When bringing me back, only one guard went in. They didn't chain me back to the bar, to my slight happiness. While they were on, the handcuffs had been digging into my skin, and had left a bit of a mark. "You will be taken from this place to the Lunar Penal Colony, there to be held without trial. You may not appeal against this sentence. Is that understood?" We said nothing. The guard shook his head and waited for the cage to be unlocked.

"Let's do it," the Doctor said as we all stood. Jack led the way, fighting the two guards that were present. Once they were down, Jack picked up his gun and the Doctor grabbed his sonic screwdriver. He quickly grabbed my arm and examined it. Dropping them a moment later, he strode away. I rubbed my wrists some more and followed Jack out of the room and to the lift. Once in, we stood there, waiting for it to reach the top floor. "Floor 500."

When we reached Floor 500, Jack took charge, pointing his gun at them. I walked behind him, my movements stiff. "Okay, move away from the desk! Nobody try anything clever. Everybody clear? Stand to the side and stay there."

"Who's in charge of this place?" he asked, pointing the gun at a white as paper woman with tubes coming out of her body.

"Nineteen, eighteen."

"This satellite's more than a Game Station."

"Seventy nine, eighty."

"Who killed Rose Tyler?"

"All staff are reminded that solar flares-"

"I want an answer!"

"Occur in delta point one."

"She can't reply. Don't shoot!" a man pled as the Doctor turned to him.

"Oh, don't be so thick. Like I was ever going to shoot," the Doctor said as he threw the gun to the man.

"Captain, we've got more guards on the way up. Secure the exits."

"Yes, sir."

"You, what were you saying?"

"But I've got your gun."

"Okay, so shoot me. Why can't she answer?"

"She's er. Can I put this down?"

"If you want. Just hurry up."

The man dropped the gun. "Thanks. Sorry. The Controller is linked to the transmissions. The entire output goes through her brain. You're not a member of staff so she doesn't recognize your existence."

"What's her name?"

"I don't know. She was installed when she was five years old. That's the only life she's ever known."

"Door's sealed. We should be safe for about ten minutes."

"Keep an eye on them."

"But that stuff you were saying about something going on with the Game Station. I think you're right. I've kept a log. Unauthorized transmats, encrypted signals, it's been going on for years."

"Show me."

Jack walked over to a door titled Archive Six and tried to open it. "You're not allowed in there. Archive Six is out of bounds."

"Do I look like an out of bounds sort of guy?" Jack asked, holding up his guns as he opened the door and went in.

"Solar flare activity in delta point zero fifteen."

"If you're not holding us hostage, then open the door and let us out. The staff are terrified."

"That's the same staff who execute hundreds of contestants every day."

"That's not our fault. We're just doing our jobs."

"And with that sentence you just lost the right to even talk to me. Now back off!" Suddenly the power died.

"That's just the solar flares. They interfere with the broadcast signal, so this place automatically powers down. Planet Earth gets a few repeats. It's all quite normal."

"Doctor?"

"Whatever it is, you can wait."

"I think she wants you."

"Doctor? Doctor? Where's the Doctor?"

He ran up to her. "I'm here."

"Can't see. I'm blind. So blind. All my life, blind. All I can see is numbers, but I saw you."

"What do you want?"

"Solar flares hiding me. They can't hear me. My masters, they always listen but they can't hear me now. The sun, the sun is so bright."

Who are your masters?"

"They wired my head. The name's forbidden. They control my thoughts. My masters. My masters, I had to be careful. They monitor transmissions but they don't watch the programs. I could hide you inside the games. Knew that you would find me."

"My friend died inside your games."

"Doesn't matter."

My head snapped to the woman as she said that, storming up to her from my spot by Lynda. "Don't you ever say that! She was my sister and she mattered. She mattered so much!" I screamed. The Doctor grabbed me and pulled me to him, quieting and comforting me.

"They've been hiding. My masters hiding in the dark space, watching and shaping the Earth so, so, so many years. Always been there, guiding humanity, hundreds and hundreds of years."

"Who are they?"

"They wait and plan and grow in numbers. They're strong now. So strong, my masters."

"Who are they?"

"But they speak of you, my masters, they fear the Doctor."

"Tell me, who are they?" As he asked, the lights came back on.

"Twenty one, twenty two."

"When's the next solar flare?"

"Two years' time."

"Fat lot of good that is."

Found the Tardis," Jack reported as he ran back in.

"We're not leaving now."

"No, but the Tardis worked it out." He grabbed the man sitting in a seat, pulling him up and away from the controls. "You'll want to watch this. Lynda, could you stand over there for me please?"

"I just want to go home."

"It'll only take a second. Could you stand in that spot, quick as you can. Everybody watching? Okay. Three, two, one." A beam came down and Lynda vanished.

"But you killed her!"

"Oh, do you think?" He pressed another button and she reappeared next to me and the Doctor.

"What the hell was that?" Lynda asked.

"It's a transmat beam. Not a disintegrator, a secondary transmat system. People don't get killed in the games. They get transported across space. Doctor, Cerys, Rose is still alive!" I pushed away from the Doctor as he and Jack hugged. It's wasn't that I didn't believe him, I just needed to see her in front of me.

"She's out there somewhere."

"Doctor, coordinates five point six point one-"

"Don't, the solar flares' gone. They'll hear you."

"Point four three four. No, my masters, no! I defy you! Stigma seven seven-" The Controller disappeared leaving a scream.

"They took her," the Doctor stated.

"Look, use that. It might contain the final numbers. I kept a log of all the unscheduled transmissions," the man whom we'd first spoken to said.

"Nice. Thanks. Captain Jack Harkness, by the way."

"I'm Davitch Pavale."

"Nice to meet you, Davitch Pavale."

"There's a time and a place."

"Are you saying this entire set up's been a disguise all along?" the woman asked.

"Going way back. Installing the Jagrafess a hundred years ago. Someone's been playing a long game, controlling the human race from behind the scenes for generations."

"Click on this," Jack said, handing the Doctor a small cylinder object. He pointed it and pulled up a screen, showing a specific area in space. "The transmat delivers to that point, right on the edge of the solar system." I moved to the computer Jack was at, looking at the screen.

"There's nothing there."

"No," I started, my voice coming out hoarse. "It just looks that way. There's another signal under the transmission."

"Doing what?"

"Hiding whatever's out there. Hiding it from sonar, radar, and scanner. There's something sitting right on top of planet Earth, but it's completely invisible. If I cancel the signal…" the Doctor trailed off as he did so. On the screen, a large flying saucer came to view. It zoomed out to show that there was more than one. I saw him tense as a stressed expression crossed his face. I grabbed his hand, giving him as much comfort as I could. Somehow, I knew what they were, that they were evil, that they were the cause of his pain. My thoughts instantly went to our trip to America, where we had met Van Statten, where we had encountered the Dalek. Something told me they were in those ships.

"That's impossible. I know those ships. They were destroyed."

"Obviously, they survived."

"Who did? Who are they?"

"Two hundred ships. More than two thousand on board each one. That's just about half a million of them."

"Half a million what?"

"Daleks." I looked to the ground before turning my gaze to the Doctor. He was calmly and quietly seething, his grip on my hand tightening each moment.

Coming to that conclusion, the screen changed to the saltshakers. "I will talk to the Doctor."

"Oh, will you?" the Doctor pulled away from me, walking towards the large screen. "That's nice. Hello!"

"The Dalek stratagem nears completion. The fleet is almost ready. You will not intervene."

"Oh, really? What's that, then?"

"We have your associate. You will obey or she will be exterminated."

"No." I watched as everyone looked at the Doctor, not understanding why he had said no. I, on the other hand, understood and knew he was implying. He wasn't going to obey them. He was going to intervene. He was going to meddle and stop them, not only because of what they'd done to him, but that was who he was.

"Explain yourself."

"I said no."

"What is the meaning of this negative?"

"It means no."

"But she will be destroyed."

"No!" he exclaimed, standing. "Because this is what I'm going to do. I'm going to rescue her. I'm going to save Rose Tyler from the middle of the Dalek fleet and then I'm going to save the Earth, and then, just to finish off, I'm going to wipe every last stinking Dalek out of the sky!"

"But you have no weapons, no defences, no plan."

"Yeah. And doesn't that scare you to death." The Doctor grabbed my hand and pulled me to the screen. "Rose?"

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Say something to Cerys. She thinks you're dead."

"You can't get rid of me that easily, Cer." I nodded, happy she was alright.

"I'm coming to get you," the Doctor told her before he ended the transmission with his sonic. Once that was done, we began planning.

Oh my gosh, we literally have one more chapter before we reach Ten. I can feel the tears coming. I hope the way he tried to comfort Cerys made sense. My basic goal was to completely change the whole the Doctor's in love with Rose thing in this story. As much as I loved it in the show (and will use in my new fic) I wanted this to revolve wholly around the Doctor and Cerys, him thinking of Rose as Cerys' sister and a friend to him. But yeah, that's all I had to really say. Oh, and thank you ZoeyMarieSnape for your review. I'm so glad you're enjoying the story.