Curtain call
Loki took quiet yet confident steps through the aisle. He held up a lantern and scanned the darkened theatre. The Lyceum Theatre was as silent as still as the night outside.
Loki stood still and frowned thoughtfully. A small bubble of doubt rose to the surface of his mind, was he in the wrong place?
No of course not, he reassured himself. Sir Henry's new 'secretary' who had known of Madame Vastra secret 'guests' … that could only be one person. Sending Sir Henry to Paternoster Row had been a message from that person too, Loki understood that. And he had heard enough about that person to know that they liked theatrics.
Of course Loki knew his time was limited. By now Madame Vastra either knew or suspected as much as he did. And if she had returned to Paternoster Row to find Nell handcuffed to the table, she would now be racing to the theatre.
The thought of Nell sent ripples of guilt through Loki. Ah if things were different, if he were different… But he was not his brother, and Nell Bennet was not Jane Foster. There was no point entertaining romantic notions, especially hopeless ones.
A voice broke through the darkness and roused him from his thoughts.
"All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts"
Loki turned toward the stage, where the voice had come from, holding up his lamp as he did.
A dark haired woman cloaked in black stepped into the flickering lamplight and smiled.
She looked at Loki and clicked her tongue like a disapproving school mistress. "You took your time Sunshine. I was beginning to think you weren't going to show".
With as much grace as he could muster (which was a substantial amount) Loki climbed onto the stage and gave the woman a low regal bow.
"I heard that you were dead" Loki said rising from his bow with his dangerous smile across his face, "several times over actually".
"You know it's the darndest thing, but I've heard the same about you" the woman replied, "but then I also heard that NASA faked the moon landing. You can't believe anything these days".
She smiled at Loki "You've worked out who I am then?"
"Oh yes" Loki said with an air of indifference, "but I don't believe we've ever officially met". He gave a polite bow of his head "have we? Mistress?"
Back at No. 13 Paternoster Row, the TARDIS felt the tickle of a doorway through time open. The air in the console room rippled like water as the Doctor and Thor stepped through.
Thor looked around at the ruined TARDIS in horror "is this Loki's doing?"
"No" the Doctor replied as he looked at the console and waved his sonic screwdriver over it. He frowned to himself "if anything he's tried to repair it".
He put the sonic screwdriver back and looked at Thor tersely "let's go. We may be running out of time".
"But where are we?" Thor asked as he followed the Doctor out of the TARDIS into Madame Vastra's darkened training room.
The Time Lord stuck his finger in his mouth and then held it up in the air. "Earth" he told Thor, "London, England to be precise". He waggled his finger a bit "and the year is...
"1895" a voice called from down the hallway, "and what the hell took you so long?"
Back in the theatre the Time Lord (or Time Lady as it now was) curtsied. "Missy to my friends, and enemies too I suppose".
Missy looked Loki up and down. "So you are Odin's little black sheep are you?" she smiled, "Tall, dark and handsome, a little bit sexy and dreadfully naughty...I can see why the Doctor is so sweet on you".
Loki smiled again "I suppose I should be thanking you shouldn't I? For freeing me from his little human experiment".
"Oh you worked out that was me did you?" Missy asked, "well done, gold star for you".
"I'm more interested in something else you can offer me" Loki told her.
Missy gave him a coy smile "you know what I have then?"
Loki gave her an impatient, disdainful glare. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't".
Missy gave him a sidelong glance "I'm not sure you can handle it Sunshine".
Loki gritted his teeth, "if you had seen me wield the Chiatauri sceptre, and the attack I led on New York-"
"Oh New York, yes I know all about that" Missy waved a dismissive hand, "that's how you got my attention in the first place".
She gave Loki an unimpressed look. "But let's be honest. That was amateur hour wasn't it? Any idiot can control an army if it lacks free will. And let's not forget that you lost that battle. Didn't you Petal?"
Loki clenched his fists "I did".
"So do you think you are really ready to play with the big boys and girls now?" Missy asked as she pulled a silver pocket watch from the folds of her dress, "Or do you want to go back to playing house with your little girlfriend?"
"Twice now" the Doctor said, "you do realise that? He's tied you up twice now".
"Yes thank you" Nell said sharply, trying to ignore the Doctor's amused expression. She also fancied she could see a slight smirk on Thor's face.
Nell looked severely at the Doctor. "Feel free to release me at your earliest convenience".
The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the handcuffs. They opened with a soft click.
"Where is Loki now?" Thor asked as Nell stood up and rubbed her wrist.
"I don't know" Nell responded, "but-"
"He's going after the infinity stone isn't he?" The Doctor surmised.
Nell nodded "you know Loki. He wouldn't be himself if he weren't doing something as stupid as that".
"Stupid?" The Doctor frowned, "you don't know the half of it. When it comes to Missy, he has no idea what he's getting into".
"How about it?" Missy grinned. She opened the watch briefly so that Loki could see the orange glow of the sands within and then snapped it shut. "You can get a nice little place in the suburbs. White picket fence, two kids, a dog named Spot. You might get a mind numbing job somewhere boring like a bank. Then at night, when you lie next to your little wife – you can dream about the days when you used to be a God".
Loki glared at Missy. "If you don't intend to grant me the stone, then why are you here wasting my time?"
"Oooh well done Petal" Missy said in a slightly patronizing tone, "you almost asked the right question there".
"And what is the right question?" Loki asked impatiently.
"Oh no" Missy shook her head, "that would be cheating. Come on you clever boy, think".
A carriage rattled into Paternoster Row with Strax in the driver seat. Inside sat a worried Jenny and an impassive Madame Vastra.
"They're all right aren't they Ma'am?" Jenny asked, "Nothing would've happened to them would it?"
"Anything could have happened to them" Madame Vastra murmured in reply.
"Madame" Strax called out as the carriage came to a halt, "there appears to be a scantily clad female on the doorstep to our residence".
"Female?" a deep voice said indignantly, "I know you are a Sontaran, but really? Female?"
Madame Vastra stepped down from the carriage to see a muscular blonde man clad in armour and a red cape.
"You wear your cerebral fur in the same manner as Miss Bennet" Strax pointed out.
A short burst of laughter came from the front door and Madame Vastra looked up to see the Doctor step out onto the top step.
"Ah so you decided to grace us with your presence Doctor?" Madame Vastra smiled.
"I'd hate to get to the party early" the Doctor replied. He gestured to the blonde man, "oh, introductions. This is Loki's brother Thor. Thor, this Madame Vastra, her wife Jenny and the potato over there is Strax". Then he addressed the Silurian detective "Missy is here with the Sands of Time and Loki has gone after it".
"Oh the Mistress?" Madame Vastra nodded, "of course. That makes sense. She must be Sir Henry's new secretary. Let's start with the Lyceum Theatre shall we?"
She motioned for Jenny to get back into the carriage and turned back to the Doctor "and what of Eleanor? Surely she did not go with Loki?"
"No, she's right-" the Doctor looked around with surprise, he briefly disappeared into the house and then returned to the front door. "Oh bloody hell, she hasn't..."
"She loves him" Madame Vastra said tersely, "of course she has".
"Ma'am!" Jenny called urgently, leaning out of the carriage, "we have more pressing matters to attend to!"
The three heroes on the street looked around, through the fog several Weeping Angels had appeared on either side of the street. "Oh dear". Madame Vastra murmured.
"I know what you're after" the Doctor glowered at the Weeping Angels, "but I won't let you get your stony little claws on it. Do you understand me?"
The stone figures merely looked on in silence.
"I can deal with these creatures" Thor said gripping Mojlnor firmly.
"I will assist you Asgardian" Strax said, taking his favourite blaster from beneath his seat and jumping down onto the pavement.
"Go Doctor" Thor said while keeping his eyes trained on the Weeping Angels, "get these people to safety and stop Loki".
The Doctor climbed into the carriage's driver seat while Madame Vastra climbed inside and gave her wife's hand a reassuring squeeze.
The Doctor looked at the horse, "OK now we need to the Lyceum theatre. Do you know where it is?"
"Doctor what are you doing?" Jenny called.
"I speak horse" the doctor explained. The horse whinnied and the Doctor looked back towards the carriage "see? He knows the way. And he said to stop calling him Silver Blaze. His name is Terrence".
The horse reared up and then began to gallop, darting expertly around the Weeping Angels. "Good luck Thor" the Doctor called back as the carriage disappeared into the fog.
"I don't need luck Doctor" Thor murmured. He held his mighty hammer up high. Beside him he heard Strax powering up his blaster.
Thor grinned at the Weeping Angels. "Now, which one of you wants to be first?"