A/N: Sorry about the delay, I've been very busy lately and I still will be for a while so the followong chapters may be delayed longer than the usual two or three days and I apologise now for any inconvience. I hope you still enjoy the story...
The suit stood, cutting a hole in the sunlight and casting a long, dark shadow along the amber floor. The sun was setting and time was running out, in the darkness the chances of anyone surviving the night a next to nothing. The archaeologists had to hurry to the core if they wanted any chance of saving the Library and the 4,022 missing people.
"Hey, who turned out the lights?" the stolen voice echoed.
It took an uneasy step closer with the big boot pounding to the floor as it motioned forwards. The skeleton raised its arm to reach out towards the archaeologists.
"Oh shoot... it must've followed me here..." River gasped. Her feet were cemented to the floor and her gaze fixed on the skeleton.
"We need to get to the core!" Anita panicked. "C'mon, there isn't much time left, Professor Song, we have to go now!" She began to inch further down the long stretch of balcony.
The Vashta Nerada suit inched closer slowly and steadily. Its extended arm, reaching towards its prey as it neared closer.
"Hey, who turned out the lights?"
"But, what do we do about the suit?" Other Dave asked. He glanced from Anita to the nearing suit. "We can't keep running forever." He knew that she was scared and her favourite option was to run, it may not work this time though.
'Core Self-Destruct in 18:00 minutes...' The faint voice form the computer announced. It announced each minute of change in the countdown.
"Let's just try and outrun it, we might be able to make it to the core before it eats the rest of us." Anita suggested. She always runs from her fears but, this you can't just run and hide from. Her plan was mediocre and there was only a slim possibility of it succeeding.
"No..." River responded sternly. "I want answers first..." She stepped towards the Vashta Nerada with a fearless look in her eyes.
"River, what are you doing?" Anita whispered. "We don't have time to play 20 questions! Let's just start running." Anita tried and tried to convince River to run but, she can't. River always stands by her own thoughts and hers alone.
"Anita... Be quiet!" River snapped back at her. She turned towards the skeleton and grinned "Now, I read in the books that Vashta Nerada live in forests and feed off dead, decaying animals. Not living beings, any explanation?" She questioned the skeleton, feeling quite clever yet baffled simultaneously.
The skeleton lowered its arm and stood still. "We... we want... our forests... back..." the Vashta Nerada struggled to use voice communication.
"...Back? But, there aren't any forests here..." Other Dave pondered. River turned her head and raised an eyebrow to Other Dave. Her golden curls rested on her shoulder as she looked at Other Dave's blank expression.
"Oh aren't there?" she questioned, waiting for him to realise.
Other Dave glanced at Anita, then to River. "Oh..." his eyes scanned his surroundings: wooden doors, walls, tables, chairs and bookcases but, most importantly the books themselves. Wood and paper come from trees and the library is full of both wood and paper- it was a reconstructed forest.
"These were the forests that the Vashta Nerada lived in... until, humans came and made them into this." River explained, now fully understanding. She looked over the balcony at the rest of the Library below. "They're only defending themselves."
"You destroyed... our forests... and we want... vengeance!"
"But, we didn't do anything wrong..." Anita spoke up. Her body was shaking with fear.
"The Vashta Nerada is holding all of humanity responsible... Unless..." River whispered back to her. Her eyes widened as she had an idea come to her "If you let us live, we can help you find somewhere else to go and live peacefully..." River addressed the Vashta Nerada and was trying to strike up a deal.
"We... are only interested in our forests!" the Vashta Nerada hissed.
"So much for bargaining with them..." River mumbled out of frustration. "Okay..." she accepted her failure and began to rethink her strategy. "We don't have much time left; there must be something we can do..." River began pacing, still avoiding the motionless suit. "Think... think!" she ordered herself. Her hands placed on her temples, she was trying to concentrate.
Other Dave sighed as he thought, there wasn't much time left so he had to act fast. "You both go the core, I'll hold him off..." he turned to face the girls. He saw the pressure mounding up on River and he couldn't bare the sight anymore.
"What? But Dave..." Anita questioned.
"No." River strongly replied before Other Dave could respond to Anita. She strode over to him "...I'm not leaving anyone else to die, there's been enough death today already..." she breathed with a shaky voice.
"I'll distract it so that'll buy you more time to get to the core, there's no other way, River... Now, enough talking and time-wasting, you have to go." Other Dave bravely said, without any fear in his tone. This was the first dispute he had had with River, and he tried to come up with possible come backs to River's arguments.
River just stood refusing to move, she was always so stubborn. "Oh, Dave I'll try to think of something to get you back safe... We just need a minute to think!" River pleaded, it sounded as if she was giving in but, she was not letting anyone else die that easily. "...Please!" she begged in a trembling whisper. Her last attempt to try and change Dave's mind was pleading- something she doesn't do very often as her forceful and demanding nature usually was enough to convince a person.
"We don't have a minute!" Other Dave snapped impatiently. "...Go!" he ordered. He walked closer to the suit, standing in front of Anita and River protecting them.
"Dave..." River sighed.
Then he sighed and flashed them both a small grin "...I'm sorry." He meaningfully said with a tear sitting on the bottom of his eyelid. It started to trickle down his cheek, as he knew his time was nearly up.
"Thanks Dave, for everything." Anita smiled through a tear. She saw no use in trying to argue with him- his mind was 'more set than concrete.'
"S'alright Anita!" he returned the smile. "Now go, if you want any chance of surviving."
Anita started making her way down the corridor but, she was alone. River was frozen with shock and sadness; she didn't want anyone else to die today. Anita came back and walked over to River and grabbed hold of her shoulders forcing her to come.
"C'mon River, there's nothing more we can do but, head to the core." Anita whispered.
"Dave! I'm so sorry!" River apologised one last meaningful time as she and Anita went through the double doors at the end of the long balcony.
The last thing River saw before the doors closed was Other Dave standing face-to- skull with the Vashta Nerada suit. Shadows were spreading from its feet and Other Dave started to back away from them step by step. Then, the doors eased closed with a click...