Sorry for the very long delay.
It was perhaps a week after her arrival (it was even harder to keep track of time here than on the TARDIS) that Rose realised that there were lots of people that she'd met on her travels that she'd like to see again. The problem was that having travelled through time, these people didn't exist yet. And so once again, whilst sitting in her room, she summoned up Nathaniel for some answers.
"Yes Rose, how can I be of assistance?" he asked.
"There were a lot of people that I met that I'd like to see again…" began Rose.
"But having travelled through time they are all scattered through different times, and you're wondering if you can travel through time now to visit them," finished Nathaniel.
"Er, yeah," said Rose. "How did…"
"Whenever we're assigned new people we're always briefed about their circumstances," explained Nathaniel. "These lead onto what a person can and can't do. In the case of time-travellers, like yourself, you are permitted to travel forwards in time as long as you have the specific intention to meet someone you knew before."
"Great!" exclaimed Rose. "I'd really like to check up on someone. We got off to a rough start, she tried to kill me, then she possessed me, but in the end I think she learned her lesson. So how do I get to her?"
"I'll guide you through it, step by step," said Nathaniel. "First, you must…" He stopped as a beeper began to go off.
"Oh nuts," he said. "I've been called to welcome someone new into Heaven. I've gotta go."
"Can't they get someone else to do it?" asked Rose.
"Nope, sorry," replied Nathaniel.
"But can't you be in two places at once?" asked Rose.
"I'm an angel, not God," said Nathaniel. "Here, take this." A booklet appeared out of thin air and landed on the floor. Nathaniel then disappeared.
"Great," sighed Rose, picking up the booklet. "Oh well, let's do this." She looked through the book and found the section that allowed you to travel through time.
" 'First, say out loud the year you wish to go to'," Rose read. "Okay, it was definitely 5 billion and something. But 5 billion and what? … I know – 5 billion/Apple/6! No wait, that was the year of the end of Earth … oh come on, what was it?!" Rose strained her brain trying to think of what the year was. Had Nathaniel stuck around, he would have told her that in Heaven, you can be instantly reminded of things if you want to. Unfortunately Rose wasn't aware of this. She bit her lip in frustration.
"Okay," she said. "I think it was … 5 billion and 53. 5 BILLION AND 53!" Instantly Rose zoomed through time. She landed in the exact same spot, however the room she was in had changed dramatically. Obviously her tastes had changed over time. But something about the room wasn't quite right. It was somehow more … manly.
Oh God, am I living with a guy? Rose wondered. She shut the thought out of her mind, dreading that she would one day find love with someone who wasn't the Doctor. She wished she could stay and find out what was going on, but then she remembered the reason why she was here. She hastily looked back at the booklet.
" 'Next, think of the person you want to see'," she continued. She wondered what image she should use. There was pre-surgery Cassandra, and post-surgery Cassandra. Rose decided that now she was in Heaven, Cassandra would want to be young and beautiful again. She thought of her image and she thought of her name. Once again the world around her changed, and she found herself standing outside a large grey door.
"Not very heavenly," she murmured. She then read the sign that was posted on the door – LIFT TO LIMBO.
"Limbo," breathed Rose. "So she didn't make it to Heaven after all." Nervously Rose opened the door. She stepped inside, pressed the single button that was in there and soon the lift was moving. Rose sighed, wondering what Limbo, the place for those who weren't good enough to make it to Heaven, would be like. There was a ding as the lift stopped and the doors opened. Rose was just about to consult the booklet for how to find Cassandra, when she saw another door. There was a man standing at the door. Rose walked up to him.
"Um, hello," she said. "I'm looking for someone …"
"Name," said the man.
"Um, mine or theirs?" asked Rose.
"Theirs," stated the man.
"Cassandra O' Brien," said Rose. The man took out a microphone, tapped it, and spoke into it.
"Attention ladies and gentlemen, would Cassandra O' Brien please make her way to the door, you have a guest," he said. He then turned to Rose. "She's on her way out."
"Thanks," said Rose. "So what are you, an angel?"
"Me? Nah," said the man. "I'm just a guy who died and went to Limbo. I used to spend my days with the rest of the guys, then I was promoted to monitor them."
"Do you think you'll make it to Heaven?" asked Rose.
"Dunno," admitted the man. "I'd like to. Maybe in a few thousand years if I'm lucky." Rose gaped.
"Th-thousand?" she stammered. The man laughed.
"I take it you ain't been dead long," he said.
"About a week," said Rose.
"There you go," said the man. "You have no idea about the way time passes here. A hundred years feels like it goes by in a second. A thousand years every minute. The universe moves on around you, and you're stuck here in the same old place, wishing every day that you didn't bomb those buildings and you didn't kill those hostages." Rose slowly backed away as the man recounted his messed-up life. At last the door opened, and Cassandra walked out.
"Oh my goodness," she said. "Rose Tyler."
"Cassandra," acknowledged Rose. "Hi."
"Hi," said an astounded Cassandra. "Um, we've only got ten minutes. Shall we go somewhere a little more private?"
"Yeah, sure," said Rose. "Do you want to transport us or shall I?"
"Transport?" said Cassandra. "Ah yes, you Heaveners can do that can't you?"
"Heaveners?" questioned Rose.
"Just our little nickname for you," explained Cassandra. "Being in Heaven and being in Limbo are completely different things. You've got powers. We don't."
"Oh," said Rose. "Um, right. Let's go." Rose shut her eyes, and when she opened them she was in a large white room.
"We're not allowed much here, even the rooms we speak to visitors in are a blank canvas," said Cassandra, sighing.
"So what do you get up to in Limbo anyway?" asked Rose. Cassandra groaned.
"It's like a mix of school detention and Alcoholics Anonymous," she said. "On one hand, you've got the line writing and the banning of things that could keep us entertained. But then there's the confessing of our sins and the discussion of our feelings. And I've gotta tell you – it doesn't get any easier with time."
"So how do you get to Heaven?" Rose asked.
"You've got to be truly, completely sorry about your sins," said Cassandra. "I made it this far because when I was possessing that diseased girl, I realised what it felt like to be her. It was then that I learned how to truly empathise with someone, which made me feel bad about the things I'd done. But while being in that situation certainly humbled me, I've still got a long way to go to fully make up for what I've done. I suppose you got a free pass into Heaven then?"
"Um, if you're implying that I didn't have to go through here first, yes, that's correct," replied Rose.
"Thought so," said Cassandra. "I saw the things you and the Doctor did to save the universe. I knew a few white lies here and there would be cancelled out by the whole saving the world thing."
"What white lies?" questioned Rose.
"You know, lies about not being head-over-heels for the Doctor," said Cassandra cheekily. "I was in your head, I know how you felt about him." Rose lowered her head at this statement, and Cassandra realised she'd touched on a fragile subject. She cleared her throat.
"So anyway, being in Limbo sure isn't the best life, but hey, at least I'm not in Hell," she said. Rose gulped.
"So … there really is a Hell?" she said, lowering her voice.
"Oh yes," confirmed Cassandra. "At least that's what we've been told, and I doubt the angels would be allowed to lie to us, right? They've told us the most terrible things about it."
"It's not all caverns and fire and sulfur is it?" asked Rose.
"No," said Cassandra. "Apparently Hell and the home of Satan are two separate things. Satan was trapped in the place you think of as Hell before the universe began, on a cursed planet that no one was meant to reach." Rose's eyes widened. "But it was only his body that was trapped. His mind wandered, corrupting whoever it could. But the souls of the damned couldn't go to the place where Satan was held. They were given a much worse fate."
"What is it?" whispered Rose. Cassandra leaned forward, her eyes dark.
"Imagine a place with no light, no dark, no hot, no cold, no air, no life," she said. "A place where your soul is doomed to wander for eternity, frightened and oh so alone. A place where the world whizzes by around you, but you can't reach it." Rose sat back, a sick feeling forming in the pit of her stomach.
"Oh God," she said. "The Void."
"What?" said Cassandra.
"I know the place," said Rose, her eyes wild with fear. "I was seconds away from being trapped there forever."
"But that's impossible," said Cassandra. "A passage between Hell and Earth can't be formed."
"Yes it can," said Rose. "It was because of that passage that I was trapped in a parallel universe. The universe that took me away from the Doctor. The universe that caused my death."
"Oh … damn," said Cassandra. "I had no idea…"
"No, thank you," said Rose. "I thought being trapped there forever would be bad enough, but to think that it's haunted by the souls of the dead…" Rose shivered. "I always hated my parallel dad for catching me, for taking me away from the Doctor. But now I realise that compared to what could have happened, I'm lucky. I'm really lucky." Rose closed her eyes, and Cassandra put an arm around her. It was amazing to see just how much this young girl had been through. Cassandra herself had lived for over 2,000 years, but even if she'd had another 2,000 she wouldn't see half as much as Rose had seen. It was then that she realised that it's not how much time you get, but what you do with it.
Just then a bell sounded, and Cassandra knew her time was up.
"Okay, I've got to get back now," she said. "Come and visit me again, yeah?" Rose nodded. They teleported back, and Cassandra walked inside. As she waved to Rose, there was something in her face that Rose swore wasn't there before. But before she could stick around to find out, the man that had spoken to her before waved her away, so Rose slowly made her way back into the lift.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
I've got an idea for the next chapter, so it shouldn't be too long. For those of you who want to know who Rose will meet, the year she is in is a major clue.