Chapter 8

The Doctor, Ankara, and Ciel sat in tense silence as Sebastian drove their carriage back toward the manor. After the Doctor had realized what they were us against, he had run from Undertaker's Parlor, insisting that the others follow him quickly. He seemed anxious to get back to the manor, his brows knit in deep thought. Ciel watched him quietly, doing his best to ignore the feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. Going up against a crazed angel was bad enough, but now they had an entire alien race vying for their destruction as well? He wasn't even sure how capable Sebastian would be in such a situation.

"Doctor, we need to know everything you can tell us about the Daleks." he said suddenly, the silence not helping his frayed nerves.

"Their bodies are relatively soft and vulnerable, but they keep themselves encased in a metal suit of armor. They also generate high-energy force fields, which make them almost impervious to bullets. If you are going to attempt to shoot one, I'd suggest aiming for the eye piece. And don't let them shoot you with a laser. One hit and you're disintegrated. Gone." the Doctor answered softly.

"What of their beliefs? Could they be worshiping Remiel as a god of sorts?" Ankara asked.

"Impossible. Daleks have no faith. They are the perfect soldiers, they only have orders. And they follow those orders with as much loyalty as Sebastian does to you, Ciel. Those orders come from the emperor of the Daleks. When I last met him, several hundred years in the future, he and the rest of the Daleks had gone insane. They worshiped him as a god then. I don't know how far into insanity they are at this point."

"Which makes them all the more dangerous, and this all the more confusing. Why would Daleks and an angel work together? They are very different creatures." Ciel asked.

"Perhaps they are connected by mutual understanding, and mutual hatred. Insane or not, they seem to remember their enemies. Angels and demons are natural enemies, which Remiel has not forgotten. Just as the Daleks have not forgotten me, or I, them." the Doctor's words were strained; it was clear that this brought up unpleasant memories.

The carriage shuddered to a halt, and soon the door popped open. The Doctor hopped out quickly and rushed to the mansion, followed closely by Ciel and Ankara. Sebastian called for someone to take the carriage before following them into the foyer of the great house. Once inside the Doctor ran up to the TARDIS, fumbling with the key until he finally managed to unlock the box. He opened the door and stepped back, holding it open.

"Everyone in. The only way we're getting out questions answered is if we go directly to the source." he said with his usual grin.

While Ciel and Sebastian hesitated, Ankara ran past them, stopping just outside the door of the strange blue box. She peeked around the door tentatively, then her jaw dropped and she gasped softly.

"Oh, wow..." she muttered, stepping inside.

The Doctor followed her, leaving the door open behind him. Sebastian looked down at his young master with a slight frown. This was getting out of hand rather quickly, and he did not want his master's soul in danger. No one was going to take it but him, and it seemed that these Daleks weren't the kind to listen to such reasoning.

"This is getting very dangerous, my lord. Are you sure you want to continue?" he asked.

Ciel looked up at the butler and smirked.

"Yes. I'm not the type of person who can walk away from a game without winning it. This game is nowhere near over, Sebastian. Besides, I want to watch you interact with Miss Ankara more. You're rather interesting when you're acting unusually." he taunted, casting the demon an amused look.

Sebastian said nothing, but followed his master closely as he walked into the TARDIS. They froze in place and looked around in wonder as the door closed behind them. The TARDIS was much larger inside than out, with stairs and hallways leading to other rooms. It seemed almost circular from the inside, and a massive machine stood in the middle of it. A large tube connected the machine to the ceiling of the ship, and the Doctor was running around the machine frantically, turning knobs and hitting buttons. He grinned at them and grabbed a lever, pulling it hard.

The tube began to glow a vibrant blue, and the TARDIS started making the churning noise Ciel and Sebastian had heard when it arrived a couple of days ago. Ankara grinned widely and looked around at the strange technology, clearly excited about the adventure they were to embark on. The TARDIS lurched, and the group got the distinct feeling of leaving the ground.

"How are you going to find their ship?" Sebastian asked.

"The TARDIS can pick up on their mother-ship's signal and take us there, since we've been there before. Hold on, we're about to land!" the Doctor yelled.

They grabbed onto the rails around the platform they were on not a moment too soon, for the TARDIS landed with a solid thunk. After a moment, the Doctor walked slowly away from the machine toward the door, his expression suddenly dark and serious.

"Follow me, and don't worry, we'll be safe. The TARDIS's force field will protect us from the Daleks and Remiel. We're just here to talk for now, then we can figure out a way to get rid of them." he said sternly.

The others nodded and followed him to the door, tense and unsure of what they were about to see. The Doctor opened the door confidently and stepped outside, followed by his curious companions. A strange sight met their eyes. They were standing on the deck of a massive ship, and a large window gave them a nice view of the Earth from space. Ciel and Ankara's eyes widened as they saw it, but their wonder was quickly dashed when they noticed that they were surrounded by dozens of tin-can looking creatures with dome-shaped heads and telescopes for eye stalks. The Daleks screamed loudly at them with shrill, metallic voices that almost seemed to buzz as well.

"EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!" they chanted, shooting blue lasers at them haphazardly; luckily, the TARDIS's force field deflected them easily.

"SILENCE!" a louder metallic voice screeched, and the Daleks fell silent.

The voice came from several yards in front of them. Inside a massive tube full of some sort of clear liquid was a grayish looking blob of a creature that glared at the Doctor with hatred in its bulbous yellow eyes. Standing next to the tube was Remiel, his large white wings folded neatly at his back. The angel grinned and waved at them.

"Glad to see you could make it, Doctor, demons, and brat. I assume you know the emperor of the Daleks; at least you do, Doctor. So, what can we do for you on this fine evening?" Remiel asked, looking completely relaxed and as if he were having a chat with an old friend.

"First of all, you can tell us why you have teamed up with the Daleks. You're speeding up history, Remiel! As a Time Lord, I can't allow you to damage time!" the Doctor yelled at him.

Remiel smirked and clicked his tongue, shaking his head at him.

"You just don't understand. I don't want to damage time. I want to destroy it."