12th Cyber Legion Command Ship
The rising and falling noises of the TARDIS landing echoed in the nearly empty cargo bay of the damaged command ship. The unique properties of the old blue box (being a construct that existed outside of Time and Space) made it invisible to the Cybermen's internal scanners. Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor was looking at the scanners, scratching his head thoughtfully. "That's odd," he muttered.
Hermione had been standing behind him, watching and making mental notes on how to fly the magnificent Time machine. "What's odd, Doctor?" she inquired.
"We seem to have landed in the midsection cargo bay," the Doctor replied, still looking a little puzzled.
"Again Doctor, what's odd about that?" Hermione repeated.
The Doctor turned to face his girlfriend, a slightly embarrassed grin on his face. "We're right where I wanted us to go," he answered.
Ace, who had traveled with a different version of the Doctor for years, started to snicker. "You're right, Professor, that is pretty odd," she chuckled. "But I suppose the law of averages would have you make a landing dead on eventually," she pointed out. The Doctor scowled at her. "You know, like the saying about putting a thousand monkeys on a thousand typewriters for a thousand years and one of them managing to write a Shakespearean sonnet," she joked.
The Doctor held up a finger, gesturing that he wanted to correct her. "Actually, I tried that experiment one time," he told Ace. "Of course I had to use 3,000 monkeys because I could only work them in 8 hour shifts due to the Titan Simian labor regulations," he went on saying. "The really tricky part was developing a modified life support system that would keep the monkeys alive for a thousand years," he added.
Hermione shook her head in wonder. She was still trying to come to terms with how her boyfriend thought. Curiosity got the better of her and she had to ask, "So what happened? Did any of them manage to write a Shakespearean sonnet?"
"Not a single one," the Doctor replied. "Which isn't surprising considering how brilliant Bill's works are," he said. He started to walk down the catwalk but paused midway down. "There was one odd thing that I discovered with this experiment. Over half of the monkeys managed to write a complete political speech that was identical to the ones Sarah Palin gave," he mused.
"Who?" George and Fred asked in unison.
Jack frowned and shook his head in disgust. "She was a politician in the early 21st century who almost started World War III - twice - due to her complete lack of anything even resembling a firm grasp on reality," he spat. "The only thing that saved the Earth was the release of her private diary that showed the world how completely deranged she was," he added. Jack's face became thoughtful for a moment. "Palin always denied writing it, but several experts agreed the syntax and misspellings were totally unique to her," he stated. "You wouldn't happen to know how the diary got leaked would you, Doctor?" he asked suspiciously.
"Like I said, the monkeys really were good at forging her work," the Doctor responded. This set Jack off on a laughing fit.
Lady Vastra sighed deeply and then tapped the flat side of one of her special titanium ore swords on the railing to the catwalk. It was a sword that never needed sharpening due to a bonding process which left the edge only one molecule wide. "As humorous as human political theories can be, we do have a mission to accomplish here," she reminded everyone.
The Doctor acknowledged Vastra with a nod of his head. "Right... sorry about that," he stated before spinning around in a circle, pointing at different people with both hands. "Hermione, Vastra, Jenny... you three are coming with me to the bridge," he told them. "I want to give the Cybermen a chance to surrender before I unleash the other team - Jack, Ace, and the twins - on the unsuspecting, clanking madmen," he explained. "Jack, you'll lead your team," he added.
Jack motioned with his hand for Ace, George, and Fred to come over to him. When they got there, he gave each of them a long, steady look. The twins couldn't shake the feeling that not only was Jack trying to get a measure of them, but he was also undressing them with his eyes. "All right, I've worked with Ace before, so I know her strengths and weaknesses. What can you two handsome, young men bring to the table?" he asked.
"We're wizards," the twins replied.
Jack looked over to Ace to see if the ginger young men were joking or not. "It's true, Jack. They're really can do magic. Their parents were part of the Order of the Phoenix during the same time I was," she vouched for them.
Jack's eyes lit up. Cute, well dressed, and magically talented - this is going to be more fun than I had hoped, he thought. "Wizards huh? Well, I can't wait to see how you two handle your wands," he told them, managing to keep a straight face. Fred wasn't sure, but he thought he caught Jack's eyes darting down for just a split second when he said that. Jack looked over his shoulder at the Doctor. "How will we know when to start wrecking things?" he inquired.
Hermione dug her Order coin out of her pocket and showed it to Jack. "Both Fred and George have one just like this. It allows us to communicate over long distances without having to worry about anything physical blocking the transmission," she explained.
Jack made a satisfied face when the twins each held out their own coin. "Works for me," he agreed. "Don't be too long, Doctor. Alonso and the rest of the people over at the station don't have much time," he reminded the Doctor. Jack motioned for his team to step back so the Doctor, Hermione, Vastra and Jenny could walk past them. The sight of Vastra and Jenny wearing Victorian dresses and carrying long swords turned him on almost as much as the twins did in their suits.
The Doctor led his team out of the TARDIS and over to a lift on the far side of the cargo bay. After a quick reprogramming of the lift's computer with his sonic screwdriver, they were on their way to the bridge. The lift sped up and then sideways through the tubes that lined the interior of the ship and brought them to their desired location in less than a minute.
The Cyber Leader of the 12st Legion stood at the head of a holographic display table. The clear plas-steal on his helmet clearly displayed his brain, marking him as one of the few Cybermen who had been left with imagination. This was done so the leaders of the vast Legions could come up with creative ways to solve problems. A lesson taught to them by their numerous defeats at the hands of one particular Time Lord. Looking at the display, the Cyber Leader didn't think he would need that creativity for this mission. All they were doing was attacking a lightly defended civilian station and restocking the body parts they needed for repairs and to create new Cybermen.
When they had come out of hyperspace, he had been pleasantly surprised to see a Monarch class cruiser docked at the station. The ship would make a fine addition to his fleet once some modifications were done to the hull. The Cyber Leader's thoughts were interrupted when one of his Cyber Lieutenants came clanking over.
"Cyber Leader, internal scanners have picked up the sudden addition of eight additional life forms on our ship," the Cyber Lieutenant relayed, his metallic voice devoid of any humanity.
"What type of mat-trans energy signature was left?" the Leader inquired.
The Lieutenant paused while he reviewed the data again on his wireless link with the mainframe. "No mat-trans energy detected, Cyber Leader," he told him.
The Cyber Leader's head snapped up from the holo-table. The same thing had happened when he had lost nearly his entire Legion, and that time, there had only been one intruder. "Alert all decks to delete the intruders!" he commanded. "Seal the bridge! We must not let the Doctor or his Companions make it here!" he ordered.
While the Cyber Leader had been speaking, the doors to the lift opened, allowing the occupants to hear his orders. "That really won't be necessary seeing as how we're already here," the Doctor said smugly. He and Hermione stepped out of the lift together. A Cyberman on either side of them stepped forward from the wall with a loud clank-clank of their metallic feet. As one, they lowered their pulse rifles at the most dangerous being in the Universe.
Vastra and Jenny spun out of the lift and quickly swung their mono-molecular edged blades in perfect unison. The Cybermen standing sentry duty looked down as the front half of their rifles slid to the floor. Now unarmed, they step backed to the wall with another stomping clank-clank.
The Doctor looked from side to side at the broken rifles. He was pleased that Vastra had agreed to reign in her blood thirsty nature until they no longer had a choice. He looked at the Cyber Leader, pity in his eyes. For a brief moment, he thought about the person who had been forcefully converted into the metal man before him. What did this person do for a living before having most of his humanity ripped and cut from him? Did he have a wife and children, or was he a confirmed bachelor, the Doctor wondered. The thought of what had been stolen from not only this one person but every Cyberman made the Doctor furious.
"I'm here to give you a choice, Cyber Leader," the Doctor proclaimed, barely holding his tone in check. "The first option is for you to stop this attack immediately and take your ships to an uninhabited system to live out the remainder of your lives in peace," he offered.
"What is the second choice, Doctor?" the Cyber Leader requested.
The Doctor took one step forward, focusing his rage on the Cyber Leader. "I repeat the message I gave you when the Last Centurion was here," he said softly.
The Cyber Leader surprised the Doctor by taking a moment to think things over. The Doctor had been expecting an instant refusal. The pause gave the Doctor hope that perhaps they wouldn't have to destroy what was left of the 12th Cyber Legion after all. His new found hope was dashed when the Cyber Leader raised his hand and pointed it at the Doctor.
"Delete the Doctor and his Companions at all costs!" the Cyber Leader ordered.
As soon as the Cyber Leader spoke, Hermione had her wand out. She pointed her wand at one of the Cyber Lieutenant, gave it the proper swish and flick, and shouted, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The Lieutenant rose into the air and then slammed into the Cybermen standing at the table, knocking them over.
The Cybermen sentries stepped out from the wall again, their arms out stretched, ready to grab the intruders and rip them apart. Vastra pulled out her second sword and started spinning them around her body. She stepped into the Cyberman's reach and started slicing off segments of his arms as he stepped closer. The metal slices clanged on the floor as piece after piece fell. Eventually, the Cyberman was left with only small stumps jutting out from his shoulders. When he continued to advance, Vastra dropped into a crouch, her rear leg extended. She swung her deadly swords with precision and took the Cyberman's legs off midway between his hips and knees. The now useless sentry fell to the floor on his back, unable to right himself.
Jenny had chosen a more direct route and simply shoved her sword through the raised circle in the center of the sentry's chest. Sparks flew out both the front and rear of the Cyberman as her sword pierced his armor. Jenny kicked the remains of the mechanical monster off of her sword and the metal structure crashed to the floor.
The Doctor looked sternly at the Cyber Leader who was busy trying to disentangle himself from the other Cybermen. "Remember, I gave you a choice," he told him. The Doctor spun around and stormed back into the lift. When Hermione, Vastra, and Jenny were safely inside, he pointed his sonic screwdriver at the controls and sent them streaking back to the cargo bay.
Hermione couldn't remember ever seeing the Doctor look so cross. She brushed his cheek with her hand. "You gave them a choice, one that they weren't going to give the people on that station," she reminded him.
The Doctor took her hand in his for a moment and then let it drop. "I know, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm going to send the remainder of the 12th Cyber Legion into oblivion," he countered. Gesturing at her pocket, he told Hermione, "Tell Jack it's his turn."
At the other end of the ship, Jack, Ace, Fred, and George waited patiently (or least as close as they could get to being patient in the twins' cases) for Hermione to signal them. They were all ducked down behind some crates in a corridor that led to the engine room. The twins felt their Order coins vibrate in their pockets. Fred had his out first and looked down at a small, 3D image of Hermione in his coin. "The Doctor says your team is up," she relayed to them. "Be careful. Your mom will kill us if you guys get hurt," she added before shutting down her side of the magical link.
Heavy footsteps sounded from down the hall as a troop of eight Cybermen took up a position blocking entry to the engines. Jack smiled at the twins as he said, "Showtime!" The twins both recognized the love of mischief that flashed in Jack's eyes and smiled back.
George quickly peeked his head around the crate to get a look at what they were dealing with. He ducked back behind cover before the metal men could see him. "Eight of them, wearing metal armor, and they don't strike me as being very quick," he told his brother.
Fred thought for a moment and then smiled. "I know - S.S.S.," he said happily.
Ace frowned since she had no idea what the twins were talking about. "S.S.S.?" she repeated.
Fred gave her a brilliant smile as he and George took out small packages wrapped in tissue paper with a bow on top. The packages fit neatly in the palm of their hands. "Super Slick Slime," he explained. George winked at him and they both tore off the top of the wrapping paper with their teeth and threw the packages down the hall towards the Cybermen.
The packages landed a few feet in front of the Cybermen guarding the engine room. As soon as they hit the floor, a shiny brown substance flowed out from them. The brown slime grew to cover the floor from wall to wall and from the engine room doors to about four meters in front of the twins. The sudden attack from down the corridor stirred the Cybermen into action. Unfortunately for them, as soon as they raised a foot, the slime poured into the blank spot left by their metallic boots. When they put that foot back down, they encountered the slime and found they had absolutely no traction. Within one step, all eight of the Cybermen found themselves suddenly facing either the floor or the ceiling, depending on how they fell. A few of them had accidentally triggered their pulse rifles on the way down and shot hole in the walls, causing a massive amount of sparks.
"That's really cool looking, but we still need to get past them to get at the engines," Jack pointed out.
Fred and George stood up and pointed their wands at the pile of flailing Cybermen. "Not really a..." Fred started to say.
"...a problem for two capable wizards like ourselves," George finished. He lowered his wand slightly, pointing it into the pile. "Diffindo!" he shouted. Ace had to cover her ears as the sound of metal tearing itself apart reverberated through the corridor. She watched as a huge tear appeared in the floor below the Cybermen, causing them and most of the S.S.S. to drop to the deck below them.
Fred winked at her and pointed his wand at the tear his brother had caused. "Finite Incantatem," he said casually. The rent in the floor flowed back together as he canceled out his twin's spell. The twins turned to face each other and gave the other a high five.
Jack stood up and smiled at the young men. "OK... I'm impressed," he told them, patting them on the backs. Jack led his team to the doors that separated them from the engines. He popped a panel next to the door and used his Vortex Manipulator to override the locking program. The doors flew open and the strike team casually walked inside.
The doors opened up onto a small viewing platform over the immense engine room that ran the length of the ship. Huge cylinders of glowing blue plasma lined each side. Blue arcs of energy lanced out from the cylinders to strike energy turbines spaced evenly along the floor and ceiling. "Wicked!" the twins exclaimed.
Jack came up behind them and put a hand on each boy's shoulder. "No... wicked is reserved for later. Preferably with some whipped cream," he corrected. The twins turned to face each other, not quite believing they had heard Jack correctly. "Ace, any ideas as how to take these engines down?" he inquired.
George and Fred put their hands on Ace and Jack's shoulders, gently pushing them back. "We've got this," they said in unison. The twins pointed their wands at the closest cylinder of churning plasma. "Fiendfyre!" they incanted. Twin streams of red energy shot from their wands and intertwined before striking the plasma containment vessel.
At first, it seemed as if their spell failed, but soon the plasma inside the cylinder changed from a glowing blue to an angry red. The containment vessel shattered violently, rocking the ship. The explosion sent fragments over the travelers' heads, causing them to duck. When they straightened up, they were able to see a large, two headed dragon made up red, roiling plasma prowling around the floor of the engine room.
Fred and George spared one look at each other before pushing Jack and Ace out the door, their heads turned so they could keep an eye on the dragon they had created. "Now would be a..." George started to say.
"...great time to be leaving," Fred finished. "RUN!" he shouted as the plasma fiend caught sight of them.
As soon as they were through the doorway, Ace and Fred jumped to the right with George and Jack leaping to the left. A blast of plasma fire followed through the door and would have incinerated them if they hadn't gotten out of the way soon enough. Jack reached up and slammed his hand down on the door panel, sealing off the engine room. Once the door was shut, they felt the ship shake again, indicating the fire fiend had destroyed another containment vessel. He started to laugh and helped George up off the floor. "You two don't do things half way, do you?" he chuckled.
"Only our schoolwork," the twins answered.
"My kind of guys," Jack replied. "I'm liking you guys more and more every minute," he told them. The twins smirked at each other.
"Come on, let's get back to the TARDIS," Ace suggested.
Inside the cargo bay, a lone Cyberman hid behind a crate as he waited for a chance to attack. It heard the lift arrive and shortly after that the hatch to the stairs opened. The Cyberman was trying to decide which of the intruders to shoot first. Its mind was made up when it overheard the two groups of spare parts talking.
Jack looked across the bay at the open lift. "What took you guys so long?" he called out to the Doctor.
"I had to reroute power to the lift after the ship started lurching like Mickey after you goosed him," the Doctor shouted back.
Fred raised his hand before speaking. "Yeah... sorry, that was our fault. We sort of over did things," he explained, his expression anything but contrite. The waiting Cyberman stood up and took a step away from the crate it was hiding behind. The one who had raised his hand was taking credit for the explosions rocking the ship and therefore must be the most dangerous foe. It leveled its pulse rifle at him and squeezed off a shot.
Jack had sensed movement out of the corner of his eye. He grabbed Fred and spun him around so that Jack was standing between the young man and the lone mechanical warrior. The energy pulse struck Jack square in the back, killing him instantly. Jack's lifeless body fell into Fred's arms.
George watched as his twin was almost murdered. He swung his wand to point at the Cyberman and shouted "CONFRINGO! with all of the rage and fear he could muster feeding his spell. The Cyberman was picked up off the ground and slammed into the wall behind it with such force that his metal armor crushed like an empty soda can.
Ace helped ease Jack's body to the ground. Fred was looking shell shocked. Jack had only known them for less than an hour and he had been willing to die for him. A tear ran down his face as he straightened Jack's coat.
The Doctor walked past looking more annoyed than sad at seeing his friend's death. He barely paused as he looked down at Jack. "Someone pick up Jack and bring him back to the TARDIs," he sighed. The ship rocked back and forth, more violently this time. "Quickly," he added.
Vastra knelt down to pick up Jack's body, but Fred shook his head no. He and George managed to get an arm over their shoulders and they walked back to the TARDIS, supporting Jack between them. Inside the TARDIS, they eased Jack's body to the floor.
The Doctor busied himself with programming the TARDIS for a small spatial hop. He ran around the console, flipping switches, and turning knobs. Hermione was worried that he was suppressing his emotions. He had rarely spoken about Jack, but when he did, there was an unmistakable tone of affection. Hermione stepped up to the Doctor and silently took his hand once he threw the last lever to get them off the ship. "I'm sorry about your friend," she whispered to him.
The Doctor paused to give Hermione a strange look. His eyes went wide when he realized that he hadn't discussed Jack's "condition" with her. He glanced over at Ace who was doing her best to keep things together. Judging by her tear streaked cheeks, Jack had never told his fellow Torchwood co-worker either.
"Um... there's something you need to know about Jack," the Doctor said hesitantly. "There are two reasons why I chose to bring him along. The first is he really is one of my closest friends. I can share things with him that I can't share with other people," he stated. Jack and now Rory were the only people he knew that had lived as long as he had and could understand his perspective.
Hermione tightened her grip on the Doctor's hands. "What was the other reason?" she inquired.
"The second reason is...," the Doctor started to say. As if waiting for his cue, Jack drew in a long, ragged breath, interrupting the Doctor. This startled everyone but the Doctor and Vastra, who were both expecting it. "He can't stay dead," he said blandly. The twins, who had been on their knees next to Jack scuttled backwards, completely shocked.
Vastra put her green scaled hand on George's shoulder to comfort him. "I had nearly the same reaction the first time I saw him do that," she told him. "Of course, I was the one who had killed him in the first place, so I suppose it wasn't exactly the same," she admitted. "I killed him three more times that night until he was able to convince me he wasn't there to hurt me or Jenny," she explained. The twins shared a look, vowing to pry out what magic Jack had used to pull that stunt off.
The Doctor walked down the catwalk to where Jack was now sitting. He offered his old friend his hand and helped him stand up. "As always, glad to have you back, Jack," the Doctor said with feeling. He motioned for the others to follow him as he opened up the doors to the TARDIS.
The TARDIS had taken up a stationary position just above the space dock. From there, the travelers watched as the command ship for the 12th Cyber Legion suddenly listed to one side as a massive explosion shot out of the bow. The doomed ship drifted directly into the second, more damaged Cybermen ship causing the second one to split in two. They all watched in awe as the red plasma fiend dragon leapt from one side of the ship to the other, having finally broken free from the engine room. The plasma dragon sensed more fuel to feed off and launched itself at the space dock. The travels watched as it grew dimmer and dimmer, finally winking out of existence right before it could reach the station. The lack of oxygen had forced the plasma fiend to consume itself.
The Doctor closed the doors with a heavy sigh of relief. He gave a stern warning look to the twins who were still in shock over Jack's resurrection. "In the future, let's try to keep the uncontrollable, destructive magics to a minimum, all right?" he asked pointedly. Both twins nodded their heads in silent agreement.
Jack clapped the Doctor on the back and escorted him back to the control consoles. "Where to now, Doc?" he asked, his boyish charm cranked to full power once again.
The smile the Doctor gave Jack was one part mirth and one part fury of a Time Lord. "I think you're going to enjoy this," he said, leaning against the console. "We're going back to July 31, 1997. Once there, we're going to rescue my daughter's boyfriend from a very abusive foster family," he explained.
Jack rubbed his hands together in anticipation. He truly hated those who abused kids. His hands stopped when the realization of what else the Doctor had said clawed its way to the forefront of his mind. "Your what?" he exclaimed, darting a glance towards Hermione.