An Eternity Among The Stars

by seasidewriter1

Waking up in the Doctor Who world after a serious car crash, Selene finds herself being invited to travel with the Doctor and his companions. Together they all protect the earth from the dangers it faces as well as saving other worlds and time periods. But as time goes on, how strong will the relationship between the two become? Will they fall in love? starts with 10 *Doctor/OC*

4. Rise of the Cybermen

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who (any of the worlds or creatures and such) or any of the characters. I'd love to own the Doctor, that would be… amazing. But alas, I only own my OC Selene.

Foreword: Okay, so, anytime a Cyberman speaks it will be written in italics as well as underlined. Just a heads up! Enjoy the chapter!

Allons-y!

4. Rise of the Cybermen

The screen of a computer was lit with a blue background, housing the symbol of Cybus Industries logo, a thick, chunky 'C' in a circle. The computer was sitting in a laboratory, surrounded by odds and ends; metal coils, screws, nuts, bolts, wiring, buttons and other things that could be classified as merely junk. A man in a white lab coat reached out to a box that had a switch on it. Flipping said switch, a light burst on, illuminating a sort of humanoid figure behind him. He turned and looked at it, smiling.

" The prototype has passed every test, Sir. It's working!" The man announced joyfully, staring at the creation before him.

" I hardly think working is the correct word," Said the second man, an older man in a wheel chair as he used the motor on his chair to move him forward. " That would apply only to machines."

" I'm sorry, I should say… It's alive," Replied the first man, who had graying brown hair, and two earpieces were stuck in his ears, much like everyone else.

" Can it hear me?"

" Might still be in shock. Bear in the mind the brain has been welded to the exoskeleton."

" Skin of metal… and a body that will never age or die!" The second man grinned as he faced the metal man before him. " I envy it! Do you know me?" He asked the metal man. " Answer. Do you know me?"

" You are John Lumic," Came the metal man's response, its voice almost double toned as well as clearly electronic with no emotion. John Lumic grinned.

" Ah! My child! Mark this day, Doctor Kendrick. We are blessed!" Lumic announced, utter joy on his face. Kendrick stepped into Lumic's line of view, an apologetic look on his face.

" Well, it's not quite over yet, Sir. We need Geneva's approval. Technically this is a new form of life, and that contravenes the bio-convention," Kendrick announced, causing Lumic's grin to fade quickly. " They need to ratify this."

" And they will refuse me!" Lumic told him, voice growing gruff.

" Nonetheless, we need to tell them!"

" And if I don't?"

" Well, I'm sorry sir, but it's my duty! I shall have to inform them!" Kendrick told him with a shake of his head.

" And how will you do that from beyond the grave?" Lumic questioned, a smirk on his face. The scientist chuckled quietly, nerves beginning to work up within him.

" I don't quite understand…" He admitted. Lumic stared up at him with shallow brown eyes, a new grin on his face. One that spoke of true harm.

" Kill him!" He ordered. Kendrick spun around as a metal arm swiftly stretched out and grabbed his shoulder, an electric shock overtaking the scientist. The man groaned as he fell to the ground, the electricity stopping his heart. Lumic turned and pressed a button for the intercom. " Captain!"

" Yes, Sir?"

" Inform all staff… we have a new destination! Set sail for Great Britain!" Lumic demanded with a grin, his metal creation standing off to the side, glinting evilly in the light.

OOOO

Selene dreamt that she was back in her crappy blue Toyota. That the semi-truck was about to hit again. But this time, she was in the back seat, sitting beside her older sister, Juliet. Her parents were in the front seat, and they didn't seem to notice the impending crash. Everything seemed to be going in slow-motion; the way everyone's expression slowly morphed from laughs and smiles to looks of shock and horror. Then everything moved to normal speed.

The windows shattered, the cars skidded and the car's horn let out a blare and kept droning on as the two vehicles stopped moving. Selene then found herself with her head resting against the shattered window. Glass was strewn across her lap and her eyes lazily worked their gaze to her sister, who was hunched over, her thick brown hair falling into her face, where blood was running down her temple. Horrified, Selene quickly sat up and leaned into the front seat, spotting her mother slouched in her seat, not moving and her father bent over the steering wheel, crimson trails of blood leaking down his face. Before she could try and wake them up to see if they were alive, she felt herself collapse against the gear-shift, eyes falling shut, mimicking the rest of her family.

Gasping, Selene sat up quickly, heart racing too quickly. Her head was pounding again, memories becoming fuzzy and blurred once more.

" It was only a nightmare, Selene… only a nightmare… they're okay…" She muttered to herself as she ran her hands through the tangled curls of her hair as she groaned. She couldn't bare if anything had happened to her family. She felt her stomach pull at the thought of her sister and parents… she'd pushed their memories as far back as she could since she knew she would never see them again. So, that's exactly what she did as she swung her feet over the edge of her bed and looked around her room.

It was a perfect size; not too small, not too big. She had a closet full of clothes the TARDIS had somehow produced and a good sized bed that always felt good to rest in at the end of an adventure and danger filled day. There was a small shelf full of books; some she'd heard of, some she'd never laid eyes on. She had yet to actually be able to sit down and browse through them, seeing as when one traveled with the Doctor, danger lurked around every corner and through every doorway.

Selene changed into a loose tan colored blouse with blue buttons and a peter-pan styled collar that tied loosely in the front. The sleeves gathered at the wrist and hung around the arms. She jeans of choice were a worn grey-blue with black Converse that were tied up with bright blue laces to finish off the outfit. She pinned her hair back on the sides and left for the console room, rubbing her eyes with a sigh.

The others had apparently already been up and about and Rose and the Doctor were recounting a previous adventure of theirs. Mickey stood by the console, pressing something down. As Selene slowly stepped up to the console, Rose grinned.

" Oh, good your up! We made you some tea, but I'm afraid it isn't as hot as it was when we first made it. You slept for a while," Rose told her, holding a mug out to her. Selene gave a weak smile and took it, nodding in thanks. She slowly sipped it and went to stand by Mickey, who she noticed was pressing down a button. She smirked a bit into her mug as she remembered how long he'd be holding that for…

The Doctor noticed something off. Selene was quiet. In the time since the time on the S.S. Madame de Pompadour (Selene had told them the name of the ship shortly after the adventure ended, especially after Mickey never stopped wondering out loud why it was Reinette who had to be chosen), that Selene liked to laugh and smile and try to make jokes, even if it didn't turn out to be all that funny. This morning she looked worn out and tired and maybe just a tad bit… distressed. His brow creased as she continued her silence, staring at her hands.

" Are you alright, Selene?" He asked with worry. She looked up and smiled waving a hand.

" Yeah, yeah, just a dream I had. Don't have to worry about it," Selene assured them. " Keep talking about whatever you were talking about when I came in, I don't like interrupting things."

After a slow nod, the Doctor turned his attention back to Rose, who beamed at him and continued to talk.

" Do you remember when..."

OOOO

" And that weird munchkin lady with the big eyes, do you remember the way she looked at you?" The Doctor asked with a laugh in his voice. He and Rose were sitting in what was presumably supposed to be the pilot's seat that comfortably sat two in it. The two were laughing and grinning as they recounted an adventure Selene didn't recall. The Doctor was leaning back in the seat, elbows resting on the back of it, one foot tucked underneath himself, the other propped up on the edge of the console. Rose was turned towards him, laughing so hard her cheeks were pink. " And then she opens her mouth and fire comes out!"

" I thought I was gonna get frazzled!" Rose told him in a happy tone.

" Yeah, one minute she's just standing there and the next minute,"

" Rawr!" The two growled out, pretending to breath fire. They both laughed as they looked at each other, recalling the memory. Selene laughed a bit and smiled, leaning against the console in front of Mickey, arms crossed. The Doctor and Rose looked truly happy and Mickey and Selene both suddenly felt awkward. Mickey chuckled slightly.

" Yeah, where was that then? What happened?" Mickey asked, still holding down the button.

" Oh it was this, um…" The Doctor began, suddenly acknowledging the other two people in the room. He was still smiling but it slowly faded as he tried to think of a way to answer the question. " Uh, this, uh, planet thing, asteroid. It's a long story. You had to be there," He finally replied. Mickey's smile faded. He looked over at Selene who merely rolled her eyes.

" I feel like I'm at school again…" She muttered to Mickey, who nodded in agreement. The two had gotten along better than Selene would have assumed; they sort of bonded over the whole 'both are new to the TARDIS and time traveling' situation.

" Um, what are you doing that for?" The Doctor asked, nodding to the button Mickey was still pressing down.

" 'Cause you told me to."

" When was that?" He asked after a pause as everyone looked at Mickey.

" About half an hour ago," Mickey replied simply.

" Um… you can let go now…" He trailed off, everyone but Mickey suddenly suppressing a smile. Rose began to giggle, a hand in front of her mouth.

" Well, how long's it been since I could've stopped?" Mickey asked in confusion. Selene pressed a hand to her mouth, looking off.

" Ten minutes… twenty…" The Doctor muttered before his voice dropped even quieter. " Twenty-nine…"

" You just forgot me!" Mickey then pointed to Selene. " And her!" Selene shrugged indifferently.

" No, no, no! I was just… I was calibrating. I was just- No, I know exactly what I'm doing," He assured him.

And with those words, the console seemed to explode. Sparks flew everywhere in a great flash of light, sending everyone to the floor. Mickey curled up in an attempt to protect himself and Selene knocked her head on the metal grating beneath her feet as she toppled over. Rose let out a gasp and ducked behind the seat, the Doctor jumping up as fast as he could. The TARDIS was being flung about, twisting and turning every possible way, creating a bumpy ride for the four time travelers. The Doctor was on his knees trying to fix wires and press buttons as the other three grabbed onto the console as well.

" What's happened?" Rose asked breathlessly. Lights began to flash, giving everyone a slight head ache.

" The Time Vortex is gone! That's impossible, it's just gone!" He announced in a panic. " BRACE YOURSELF! We're gonna crash!"

And they did. They landed on the floor at the sudden jolt, causing everyone to groan and stare up at the smoke that billowed around the room. Things like oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling as the Doctor sat up. " Everyone alright? Rose, Selene, Mickey?"

" I'm fine, I'm okay, sorry, yeah…" Mickey responded.

" I've had worst," Was Selene's reply as she sat up, tossing hair out of her face. The lights in the TARDIS were out. There was no sound. No light. Nothing.

" That really isn't good…" Selene mentioned as she stood shakily, feeling a bit wobbly on her feet.

" She's dead…" Whispered the Doctor. " The TARDIS is dead…"

" You can fix it," Rose stated hopefully, following at the Doctor's heels.

" There's nothing to fix… She's perished." He flicked switches as they all gathered around him, staring at the noiseless TARDIS engine. It was eerie. Selene had become used to the engine noise almost immediately, and its absence was a tad bit scary. The Doctor's face was composed in a look of sadness and shock. " The last TARDIS in the universe… extinct."

Selene placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it softly before gently rubbing his shoulder-blade in a comforting way.

" We can get help, yeah?" Rose asked, voice rising in panic. The Doctor hunched over the dead console, hands gripping the edges.

" Where from?" He asked.

" Well we've landed, we've got to be somewhere."

" We fell out of the Time Vortex… We've basically plummeted into nothing," Selene muttered quietly.

" We've fallen through the void. We're in some sort of no place. The silent realm… the lost dimension," The Doctor continued, voice contemplative.

" Otherwise known as London!" Mickey announced happily with a laugh. Rose and the Doctor gave him a look as Selene smirked. Well, aren't they in for a surprise? They all rushed to the door and stepped out, the Doctor pulling on his tan coat. " London, England, Earth! Hold on!" Mickey said as he jumped down from the curb side they'd landed on, leaving the other three standing in the grass and fallen leafs. He grabbed a newspaper out of a trashcan, smirking. " First of February this year! Not exactly far flung is it?"

Rose jogged over and jumped down, Selene following. Rose stared down at the newspaper, swiping hair out of her face. The air smelled of the water front, seeing as they were just off the River Thames, and the wind was chilly, biting through the thin fabric of Selene's blouse.

" So, this is London?" The Doctor asked as he noticed something very off in the skies.

" Yep!" Mickey announced.

" Your city."

" That's the one."

" Just as we left it."

" Bang on!"

" And that includes the zeppelins?" The Doctor inquired, looking up at the sky. Everyone's head snapped up to look at the sky, spotting the silver zeppelins floating through the sky.

" What the hell…" Mickey muttered.

" That's beautiful!" Rose announced.

" Okay, so it's London with a big international zeppelin festival!" Mickey concluded. Selene shook her head, patting his shoulder.

" No, Mickey, just… no. It isn't your London," She told him.

" It isn't your world," The Doctor dead panned as they stared out over the Thames at all the zeppelins over the city.

" But if the date's the same, it's parallel, right? Am I right? Like a parallel earth where they got zeppelins? Am I right, I'm right aren't I?"

" Must be…" The Doctor muttered. Mickey suddenly looked at Selene, as did the Doctor and Rose. " Is this your world?"

" Hm? What? No! God no, There aren't any zeppelins in my world," She assured them, shoving her hands into her jeans pockets, shaking her head. " I'd have told you if there were zeppelins. This is just… another parallel world." Rose's eye caught a poster just off to the side and she felt her blood almost run cold in shock.

" So, a parallel world where…" Rose began but was cut off by Mickey.

" Oh come on! You've seen it on films. Like an alternative to our world where everything's the same but a little bit different! Like, I don't know, traffic lights are blue! Tony Blaire never got elected!" Mickey began to list off the possibilities.

" And he's still alive…" Rose muttered, staring at a poster of her father, Pete Tyler. He wore a grey suit, a red tie, and was holding a bottle labeled Vitex. It was an advertisement. He also appeared to be wearing some odd kind of earpieces, almost like blue-tooth. " A parallel world where my dad's still alive…"

Rose's feet began to move forward, her face never changing the look of shock.

" Don't look at it, Rose! Don't even think about it, this is not your world!" The Doctor begged her as he, Selene and Mickey followed her quickly. Rose stepped up to the poster and reached out.

" But he's my dad, and…" Her fingers brushed the surface of the poster and it moved, like a digitalized poster.

" Trust me on this," Said Pete Tyler's image. Rose stepped back, staring in shock.

" Oh that's weird… but he's real!"

" Trust me on this!"

" He's a success!" Rose laughed with a smile. " He was always planning these daft little schemes, health-food, drinks and stuff. Everyone said they were useless. But he did it," She said happily. The Doctor's hands suddenly found their way to Rose's arms, spinning her around to face him. His face was stern and almost angry.

" Rose, if you ever trusted me, listen to me now!" He demanded, just as Rose glanced back at the poster. " Stop looking at it! Your father's dead! He died when you were six months old. That is not your Pete, it's a Pete! For all we know he's got his own Jackie, his own Rose, his own daughter who is someone else, but not you. You can't see him, not ever." Rose's face had fallen from happiness straight to pure sadness. She gave one small nod as she stared at the ground.

Selene placed a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder as the Doctor dropped his hands from where he'd been holding Rose's arms.

" He's right…" Selene muttered. " But trust me, I know how your probably feeling right now…" Rose nodded again, giving a tiny yet grateful smile to Selene. The Doctor sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

" Alright, I'm going back to the TARDIS to see if there's anything that could possibly help us get out of here some how…" He began to walk away but spun around to walk backwards. He pointed to Mickey and Selene. " Make sure that Rose doesn't run off and do anything we'd regret!" He called out before running back to the TARDIS. Rose let out a sad sigh as she ran her hands through her blond hair. What was she going to do?

OOOO

Pete Tyler drove up to his large almost mansion-like house, hopping out with a bouquet of flowers wrapped in fluorescent yellow plastic. He straightened the cuffs of his sleeves before turning on his heel and entering the front hall.

" Hello? Sweetheart?" He called out as he held the flowers behind his back. He walked forward towards a large set of stairs that were decorated in swatches of gold and pink cloth. He spotted his wife, Jackie Tyler, descending the stairs in a black silk dressing gown. Her blond hair was pulled back on the sides and a set of earpieces were visible in her ears. She gave him a look. " Only me."

" Oh, the bad penny!" She replied as she descended the rest of the stairs to come to a stop in front of him. " Was this your idea, don't deny it! It's got your fingerprints all over it!" She told him angrily, glaring up at him. She mockingly gave a thumbs up and mimicked him. " 'Trust me on this', oh, I can trust you alright, trust you to cock it up!"

" What've I done now?" Pete asked incredulously, looking confused and a tad shocked. Jackie always seemed to be blaming him for something, but this time she seemed genuinely pissed off about it.

" Have a look!" She insisted, leading him into a parlor room, where a banner was displayed reading;

HAPPY 40th BIRTHDAY

Jackie put her hands on her hips with an eyebrow cocked as she gave Pete another look. He looked at the banner and saw nothing wrong with it. He shrugged and shook his head.

" What's wrong with that?" He asked.

" Forty! It says 'forty'!"

" You are forty!"

" Well, I don't want the whole world telling, do I?" Jackie asked in a hushed tone, her back to a large window that overlooked a beautiful country landscape.

" You're having a party tonight," Pete told her.

" My thirty-ninth," Jackie corrected, making another hateful glance to the banner. Pete internally sighed. Right, cause thirty-nine is so much younger than forty… He thought to himself. " My official biography says I was born on the same day as Cuba Gooding Jr., and that makes me thirty-nine, thank you very much. Rose!" She called out, her train of thought changing as she marched out of the room. " Come here! Rose!"

Pete followed his wife, dodging busy staff as he did so. Jackie walked to the stairs and then he held out the flowers.

" These are from the girls at the office. Happy birthday," He told her. She looked at the flowers, her face vacant of expression. A bouquet of flowers. She was receiving bouquet of flowers for her birthday. She turned her gaze to her husband.

" I've got hand-sculpted arrangements by Veronica of Reykjavik, and your secretary stopped off at a garage? I don't think so!" She snapped, crossing her arms. Pete sighed as she continued. " And if you're giving out presents, where's my zeppelin? Everyone else's got one." She turned to the stairs. " Rose! Come on Rose!" Turning back to Pete, she spoke again.

" Look, you didn't even notice, did you? Special delivery, got send 'round today. Birthday present from Mr. Lumic. Latest model, diamond studded!" She informed, turning her head to the side for Pete to see the new earpieces. He looked at them closely for a moment. " Pick up signals from Venezuela." Pete gave her a look.

" Why would you want to pick up signals from Venezuela?" He asked in confusion. Jackie repressed a groan and sighed in exasperation instead.

" Well, I don't know, but now I can find out!" She snapped. " Oh, for God's sake where is she? Rose! Oh, she needs a good bath before tonight, or she's gonna be honking. Rose, come to Mummy! Come on!" A small lap dog, presumably a Yorkshire Terrier, trotted down to the first landing, and Jackie grinned. " Ah, there you are, my darling! Good girl!" Jackie ran to pet her dog as Pete's earpiece began to ring. He stepped off to the side and answered, pressing a button on the earpiece.

" Mr. Lumic! Jackie was just saying thank you," Pete told Lumic. " That's very kind of you."

" Those ear-pods are handmade. Tell her to take care," Responded Lumic, his voice gruff.

" 'Course I will… course I will… Uh, I don't suppose you'll be, uh, joining us tonight?" Pete questioned as he shifted his weight on his feet, almost sounding nervous. " For the party? We'd be very honored."

" The world below can party, some of us have work to do. My plans have advanced, Peter. The president has promised a decision. I'm flying in now. We'll be at the airstrip by five o'clock."

" Right… it's just… I promised I'd help the wife out tonight," Pete admitted quietly, gazing up the stares towards the room Jackie had disappeared into.

" If the president of Great Britain can make this meeting, then so can you," Lumic stated firmly, refusing to be denied. Pete chuckled.

" I don't know, he's not married to Jackie, is he?"

" Five o'clock, Mr. Tyler! Famous day!" And with that, there was a beep and the connection cut off. Pete clenched his teeth and walked off, trying to sort out what to do.

Meanwhile, Lumic sat in his zeppelin as he made his way back to London. He moved a mouth piece connected to his wheel chair to his face, inhaled a good amount of pressurized oxygen and moved the mouth piece away again. He stared at a screen in the wall before him and began to speak.

" Voice print access. John Lumic. Initiate ear-pod override. Subject, Jacqueline Tyler." Pictures fluttered across the screen till Jackie's popped up. " Activate!"

Jackie, who had been doing her makeup, dropped her makeup brush, face going blank as she stared in the mirror. Two pieces of metal extended from the earpieces and connected in a square arch over her head, connecting with a blue light.

" Download, Tyler residence, February the first, give me security arrangements for tonight!" Lumic demanded. " Passwords, encryptions, services.

The earpieces sparked with dull blue light, which was sending information back to Lumic on his zeppelin.

Lumic grinned as he got a floor plan and a list of everything he needed.

" And restore!"

With that, the earpieces returned to normal (well, as normal as they could possibly be) and Jackie blinked a few times, coming too again. She shook her head as she picked up her makeup brush once more and began to finish off her make up.

Lumic grinned again.

" Thank you, Mrs. Tyler. Activate picture link!" The screen before him lit up again to show the face of an older man, also wearing earpieces. " Mr. Crane!"

" Mr. Lumic," Crane replied.

" Events are moving faster than I anticipated. I need extra staff!" Lumic informed.

" Very good, Sir. Then I shall go on a recruitment drive," Crane told him from where he sat in his truck, bundled up in a winter jacket and gloves.

Crane turned to look at the driver of the semi-truck and said,

" Back her up."

OOOO

Selene sighed as she looked at the pavement she was walking on. Mickey had left her and Rose to go back to the TARDIS and shortly after that, Selene lost focus and found herself alone, Rose no where in sight. So, she'd turned around and decided to head back to the TARDIS as well, only to find her self a tad bit lost. She had her hands in her pockets as she walked, shivering a bit. Maybe she could grab a jacket, it was rather cold… She looked up and across the street only to freeze.
" Oh my God… No, that… that can't be," She said to herself as she saw what looked to be four familiar looking people… a group of people that as they swiftly walked past, she could have sworn had been her family… and herself. But that should be impossible. She didn't originally exist in the Doctor Who universe, so she couldn't possibly have a parallel self in this universe, could she? Selene swiftly jogged forward to try and get another look at the four people walking down the street, but they had just rounded a corner, disappearing from view. She shook her head.

" No, you're still just upset about the dream… it's nothing… they just… looked like your family…" She paused. " I'm talking to myself, this is bad." And with that, she made her way towards the TARDIS.

The Doctor had been searching the TARDIS for any signs of life at all when he heard the door open. Spinning around he saw Mickey striding in, shutting the door behind himself. He glared at him and groaned.

" I told you to keep an eye on her!" The Doctor exclaimed. Mickey shrugged as he stopped in front of the Doctor.

" Selene's still with her, I'm sure she'll be able to handle looking after her," Mickey said.

" Selene's just as likely to wander off and see what's different here!"

" They're alright!"

" They go wandering off, especially Rose! A parallel world, it's like a gingerbread house! All those temptations calling out!" The Doctor cried, gesturing to the door with an angry expression on his face. Sure Selene probably knew the consequences of wandering off in a place like this, but she'd only known it as a show, not a reality. For all he knew she could break whatever rules she'd been keeping herself to and wander off to go see how close this world resembled hers.

" Oh so it's just Rose and Selene then? But mostly Rose? Nothing out there to tempt me?" Mickey asked, voice turning offended.

" Well, I don't know, I can't worry about everything," The Doctor told him as he looked at the grating on the console room floor. " If I could just get this thing to-" He violently kicked the console with an angry expression before turning to go sit in the pilot seat.

" Did that help?" Mickey asked.

" Yes."

" Did that hurt?"

" Yes. Ow," He said as he sat down, lifting his right leg to hold onto his foot. Just then the TARDIS door squeaked again and the two men turned to see Selene step in, looking a bit distant. " You see, now Rose is all alone," The Doctor told Mickey.

" She'll be okay, trust me on this," Selene told them as she stepped over. She looked at the Doctor and smiled a tiny bit. " Hurt your foot?" The Doctor shot her look and she laughed very quietly before he looked around the darkened TARDIS.

" We're not meant to be here…" He muttered. " The TARDIS draws it's power from the universe, but it's the wrong universe. It's like diesel in a petrol engine."

" But… I've seen it in comics!" Mickey told him as he sat beside the Doctor. " People are hopping from one alternative world to another, it's easy."

" Don't believe all the comics and television shows. I traveled to your world by getting into a car crash, remember? It wasn't fun or easy," Selene pointed out as she leaned against the console, crossing her arms.

" She's right. It isn't easy in the real world. Used to be easy. When the Time Lords kept their eye on everything, you could… pop between realities, home in time for tea. Then they died and took it all with them…the walls of reality closed, the worlds were sealed. Everything became that bit less kind…" The Doctor explained, voice distant and sad. He remembered those times, he remembered when those ended. He knew that what happened should be impossible, but then again, a lot of impossible things had been happening lately…

" So how'd Selene get to our world if it's so impossible?" Mickey inquired. The Doctor gazed at Selene intently for a moment, looking her over again. He shook his head a bit.

" She's an impossible girl… literally," He muttered. Selene smirked.

" Then how did we get here?" Mickey asked. The Doctor rubbed his eyes with one hand.

" I don't know. Accident? Should've been impossible. Now we're trapped." The Doctor looked to the floor as Mickey blew out a defeated breath. He saw something… something bright in the darkness… something that looked like… light. " What's that?" Selene looked down through the grating.

" What?" Mickey asked.

" That, there," The Doctor stood, staring down at the light. " Is that a reflection?"

" What is there to reflect, Doctor?" Selene asked with a grin. " That's light!"

" Is it? Is that a light?" He asked as they all crouched down to look at the tiny blue-green light. " I think that is! That's all we need! We've got power!" The Doctor yanked up the panel of grating and grinned down at the little power-source. " Mickey, Selene, we've got power! Ha!"

OOOO

Mr. Crane jumped out of the large, black, semi-truck that had 'ELECTROMATICS' inscribed on the side. They had pulled up to a garbage dump where people without homes had taken up residence. He banged on the back of the truck and then called out,

" Gentlemen! Gentlemen! I beg your attention! Christmas has come early, so come and get it!" The back of the truck opened and two men lowered a gang-plank like walk way up to the back of it. " Oh, smell that, comrades; burgers and chips, sausage and beans, pork, chicken, and hot sweet tea, all for free!"

Men began to run for the back of the truck at the promise of a free meal. A younger man with short and spiky blond hair and all black clothing rushed after the man in front of him.

" Don't go!" He said.

" But there's food!" The older man said, gesturing to the truck.

" All you can eat, free of charge, don't just stand there!" Crane insisted as a group of men climbed inside.

" They're lying!" The blond told him.

" Well, that's easy for you to say. When did you last starve?" The other man asked, looking back at the younger man.

" All those people disappearing off the streets. It's been going on for months. It's them. They're taking you away!"

" What for?"

" Experiments!"

" Oh, I'm so hungry!" The older man told him before running off to the truck, following the other men inside. The blond ran behind some debris and pulled out a camera, holding it up to film the back of the truck. As the man he'd been talking to stepped behind a plastic sheet, screams echoed out from the back.

" Take them away," Crane said in an indifferent monotone as men tried to escape, just as the doors shut and locked with finality.

OOOO

Selene and Mickey were sitting on the floor, watching as the Doctor rooted around beneath the grating, removing pieces of machinery and wiring, odds and ends, and other various things as he tried to get to the tiny light. Selene was holding a circuit board in her lap as she watched him happily search.

" It's alive!" The Doctor announced.

" What is it?" Mickey questioned as he helped move things out of the way.

" Nothing! It's tiny!" He began to pull out a long cable, tossing it out over his head in loops. " It's one of those insignificant little power cells that no one even bothers about, and it's clinging onto life! One little ounce or reality tucked away inside," The Doctor told him as he picked up the little glowing power cell.

" Enough to get us home?"

" Not yet," He said, raising it up for all of them to look at. " I need to charge it up."

" We could go outside and lash it up to the national grid," Suggested Mickey hopefully.

" No, we couldn't." Selene moved the circuit board off her lap. " We can't use energy from this universe, we need it from yours," She reminded him.

" But… we don't have anything," Mickey pointed out, his hope deflating. The Doctor smirked.

" There's me," He said. He blew against the little power cell and its green light brightened and the Doctor grinned. " I just gave away ten years of my life! Worth every second!" He laughed a bit before hauling himself out of the floor, staring at the power cell happily.

Selene began to replace all the odds and ends back into the floor and moved the grate back into place before crossing her legs and sitting comfortably again. The Doctor sat down on the floor again and they all stared at the light that now shone on all their faces.

" It's actually kind of pretty, if I can say that," Selene admitted, smiling. The Doctor smiled over at her and nodded once as the light began to dim.

" It's going out, is that okay?" Mickey asked.

" It's on a recharging cycle, it'll loop 'round, power back up and be ready to take us home in, oh, say… twenty-four hours?" The Doctor kissed the power cell, smiling a bit at the tiny little thing that would be able to take them home.

" So that gives us twenty-four hours in a parallel world?"

" Shore leave! As long as we keep our heads down! Easy, no problem. Let's go and tell her," He said before standing, running to grab his coat.

The three exited the TARDIS and bolted outside, looking up and down the walkways for Rose. When she wasn't anywhere in eye-sight Selene ran forward and looked down the paved embankment. She spotted Rose's distant figure on a bench; she was pretty easy to spot since she was wearing a bright pink jacket. Selene turned and pointed in Rose's direction.

" Found her!" She announced, gesturing for them to follow. She hadn't grabbed a coat, but she was getting used to the cool temperature, her cheeks turning a bit pink.

" Good going!" The Doctor told her, giving her a pat on the back. She laughed and rolled her eyes.

" It's pretty easy to find a missing person when you actually know where they'll be," She pointed out with a smirk, earning a laugh from the two men, who she walked between. Although she was smiling and trying to seem in a good mood, she felt a little… dead inside. After that dream and after seeing who she thought had been her family, her mind was just dwelling on the fact she couldn't see them again. And also the fact that Rose was so focused on her father at that point in time meant that this was going to be harder than she initially thought it all was going to be.

" There you are!" The Doctor called out as they neared Rose. " You alright? No applause, I fixed it!" The Doctor held up the power cell and grinned. The blond woman just stared at him for a moment from where she sat on the back of the bench, her feet resting on the seat. " Twenty-four hours then we're flying back to reality!" The Doctor sat to Rose's left and Selene dashed forward in front of Mickey to steal his seat on Rose's right. That earned her a playfully annoyed look, which made her genuinely laugh quietly before they all looked up at Rose.

The Doctor noticed her eyes cast down sadly to the phone in her hands an his face immediately fell and turned a tad annoyed.

" What is it?" He asked in a monotone. Rose looked down at him and shook the mobile a bit.

" My phone connected. There's this… Cybus network. It finds your phone…" There was a short pause. " It gave me internet access."

" Rose, whatever it says, this is the wrong world," The Doctor told her sternly. He was getting tired of having to speak to her like she was a disobedient child, it was rather annoying, especially since he knew she definitely didn't have that sort of attitude normally.

" I don't exist."

" What do you mean?"

" There's no Rose Tyler. I was never born," Rose informed them, her voice obviously depressed. " There's Pete, my Dad, and Jackie… He still married Mum, but they never had kids.

" Give me that phone," The Doctor demanded, reaching for it. Rose moved her hand quickly away from his grasp, only to have the phone pulled from her hand by Selene, who then put it in her pocket. When Rose gave her a look that clearly meant she was tired and sad and wanted the phone back, Selene gave her an apologetic smile.

" They're rich," Rose continued once she realized Selene wasn't going to give her phone back. " They got a house and cars and everything they want. But they haven't got me."
Rose jumped off the bench and held her hand out to Selene. The two had a moment where they just sort of looked each other and registered the other's sadness. That's when Selene looked down and extracted the phone from her jeans pocket and gently replaced it in Rose's palm. Rose turned away for a moment before turning back.

" I've got to see him," She said, brown eyes glittering tearfully.

" You can't," The Doctor stated firmly for what seemed to be the thousandth time.

" I just want to see him!" She complained.

" I can't let you!" He said, leaning forward, shaking his head.

" You just said twenty-four hours!"

" You can't become their daughter! That's not the way it works! Mickey, tell her!"

" Twenty-four hours, yeah?" Mickey asked as he came out of thought. He stood and began to walk away.

" Mickey, please don't!" Selene begged, being ripped from her own thoughts.

" Where are you going!?" The Doctor demanded, jumping to his Converse clad feet.

" Well I can do what I want!" Mickey proclaimed as Selene stood, beginning to try and reason with him.

" I've got the address and everything!" Rose told them, also beginning to walk away.

" Stay where you are, both of you! Rose, come back here! Mickey, come back here, right now!" The Doctor shouted angrily, brows creasing and arching in a completely put off manor.

" I just want to see him!"

" Yeah I've got things to see and all!" The Doctor spun to face Mickey.

" Like what!?"

" Well you don't know anything about me, do ya? It's always about Rose. I'm just a spare part," Mickey said.

" I'm sorry, I've got to go," Rose called again, walking off. The Doctor looked back at Mickey.

" Go on then. There's no choice is there? You can only chase after one of us and it's never gonna be me is it?"

" Back here, twenty-four hours!" The Doctor yelled to him, seizing Selene's arm and dragging her into a run to follow Rose.

" Yeah… If I haven't found something better," Muttered Mickey as he watched the two round the corner after the blond.

" They never listen, never!" The Doctor told Selene as his hand slid from her wrist to her hand as they chased after Rose's figure ahead of them. " It's nice to have you around, you actually seem to listen!" Selene smirked slightly.

" They do listen, they really do. They just don't always show it, believe me, we all know that one must always trust their Doctor," She told him as they continued to run. She squeezed his hand a bit on the last sentence, her face becoming almost immediately distant as her thoughts bounced back to her family. The two slowed down as the approached Rose, who was walking at a swift pace.

The Doctor took notice of how distant Selene was again, just like when she'd walked into the TARDIS. Her face was sad, like that morning, as well. It was almost like a flashback to the SS Madame de Pompadour, when they were walking together and he'd noticed something was up with her. He decided it shouldn't become a normal thing because he rather liked Selene's normally upbeat nature.

" What's wrong?" He asked as they kept walking. Selene paused. She didn't deny that something was, in fact wrong, but she seemed to be debating something.

" I thought I saw my family and myself walking down the street earlier. I don't think it should be possible, but… I swear to got it looked just like my family…" She told him, looking and sounding troubled. She looked up at him quickly. " But, that shouldn't be possible, right? Because I never truly existed in your universe, so I can't have a parallel family here… right?" She sounded like she needed confirmation about it all. It was really troubling her.

The Doctor stared down at her, looking a bit shocked at what she had said. In a way, she was right. If this world was a direct parallel from his universe, then she probably wouldn't have had a alternate self. However, she had been a part of events in his universe and that could easily have created another Selene in this universe. All the Doctor could think to say was,

" Well… stranger things have happened." And with those words, they caught up with Rose, finally releasing Selene's pale hand.

That's as good as an explanation can get in the Doctor Who universe, I suppose, Selene thought to herself with a shrug.

OOOO

Mickey had been wandering the still familiar streets of the alternate London, walking towards where he knew his grandmother had lived. He was hoping she was still alive here, not dead like reality. What he noticed was different were that there were patrol men. They looked to be military guards with guns and helmets and uniforms. The other differences were the fences and signs that were put around the city. The vacant buildings and lots that were being advertised by Cybus industries.

As Mickey approached the smaller sized neighborhood, a military guard stepped forward from a roadblock.

" Am I allowed to get past?" Mickey asked, pointing down the street.

" Yeah, no bother. Curfew doesn't start till ten," The guard replied. Mickey raised his eyebrows at the man's words.

" There's a curfew?" He asked. The soldier gave him a look, which clearly said that he thought Mickey was crazy.

" 'Course there is! Where have you been living mate? Up there with the toffs?" They looked up to the zeppelins.

No, just being under-appreciated in a blue time machine… he thought to himself wryly.

" I wish," Mickey replied. He began to walk towards the road block, calling back, " See ya." A second soldier lifted up the road block and let Mickey duck under.

OOOO

Rose, Selene and the Doctor were walking down a crowded street that was teeming with civilians as well as patrol men. Rose had been telling the two about Mickey's past, something that Selene had known about, but the Doctor had never bothered to ask.

" Mickey's mum just couldn't cope. His dad hung around for a while but then he just sort of wandered off," She was explaining as they headed down the street, the grey sky adding to the grim and dull feeling of the day. " He was brought up by his Gran. She was such a great woman, God, she used to slap him!" Rose laughed a bit, looking down. " But then s-she died… she tripped and fell down the stairs. It was about five years ago now, I was still in school." There was a pause of silence before the Doctor replied.

" I never knew." He said.

" Well, you never asked."

" You never said!" He retorted.

" That's Mickey. I suppose I… we just take him for granted," Rose said sadly.

" We really shouldn't," Selene added in, talking for the first time in the past ten or so minutes. " He's a really good guy. He's starting to become a brother to me." Rose smiled a bit at her, nudging her shoulder at her friendly comment.

" You two have grown on each other, I can tell. But… do you think she's still alive, his Gran?" Rose asked curiously.

" Could be. Like I said; parallel world, gingerbread house. We need to get out of here as fast as we can," The Doctor said as they wove around people.

A beeping resounded around the street and suddenly everyone froze, all movement stopping completely, all speech hindered. The three looked around at the eerie sight.

" What're they all doing?" Rose asked.

" They've stopped…" The Doctor replied as they walked around slowly.

" Well, obviously," Muttered Selene sarcastically, not catching the look she received from the Time Lord. " I swear to God this is like some sort of… horror movie! I mean, look at them all." She waved a hand in front of a man's face, not earning a flinch or a blink. " It's like they're zombies waiting to attack!"

Leave it to Selene to make some sort of joke, Rose thought with an internal chuckle as she watched the American woman look around.

" I agree, it's freaky, them stopping like that. What do you think could be causing it?" Rose asked. Tiny blue lights were flashing on the earpieces the people wore, creating a high-pitched beeping sound. The Doctor leaned in towards a man, staring at the silver earpiece in his left ear, which also sported the Cybus Industries logo.

" It's the earpieces…" The Doctor muttered. " Like Bluetooth attachments, but everyone's connected together."

Rose pulled out her beeping phone and stared at the screen.

" It's on my phone," She told the two, holding it up. " It's automatic, look, it's downloading."

" It's bound to be what everyone else is receiving, I mean, otherwise they'd be stopping at separate times with separate pieces of information," Selene reasoned as she stared down at Rose's phone. The Doctor pulled on his glasses and stared at it as well. " Look, they're getting news, international news," Selene began, pointing to the words on the tiny screen.

" Sports, weather…" Rose continued.

" They get it direct, downloaded right into their heads," The Doctor told the two women, looking up at the people around them.

" T.V. schedules, lottery numbers."

" Everyone shares the same information. Daily download published by Cybus Industries," The Doctor said as he took Rose's phone, staring at the logo at the top of the screen. Selene was still getting used to not being able to just point out 'hey, 'Cybus' sounds like 'Cyber', right? What aliens do we all know about that begin with 'Cyber?' Sometimes it killed her inside to not be able to say it, but she always had to remind herself of what consequences would come if she did say that.

The word 'JOKE' appeared on the phone screen and at the same time, in true horror movie fashion, everyone broke out into laughter. The three time travelers looked around in shock as everyone began to movie again, moving along with their day.

" I really hope my world doesn't end up like this… not like I'll ever know, but I pray for my family," Selene commented with a shudder.

" Speaking of which, you lot, you're obsessed! You'd do anything for the latest upgrade," The Doctor commented, still searching through the Cybus databases available on Rose's mobile.

" Oi, not my lot," Both Rose and Selene said at the same time, and they looked at each other, seeming like they were now repressing a small amount of laughter. It seemed like Selene was picking up some British phrases and words now, which had begun to seem natural after hearing them all the time.

" Different worlds remember?" Rose asked, gesturing to both herself and Selene.

" It's not so far off your worlds. This place is only parallel," He commented. " Oh, look at that. Cybus Industries, owners of just about every company in Britain, including Vitex, Mr. Pete Tyler's very well connected." He looked down at Rose, who was smiling up at him with a mix of hope and a knowing look. She knew that the Doctor couldn't resist something as odd as Cybus Industries owning every company in Britain, could he? " Oh, okay, I give up, let's go and see him."

Rose grinned as the three made their way down the street, getting ready for the long walk ahead of them.

OOOO

Mickey turned onto Waterton Street, heading towards a familiar looking door, his heart racing. What if she wasn't alive here? What if she was? What then? How could he leave if she was alive here and not back in reality? He reached the door and flicked the knocker up and down a bit, waiting nervously for someone to answer the door.

" Who's that there!?" Called out the familiar voice of his grandmother, Rita Ann. The door opened and a woman stepped into the doorway. " Who is it?" She asked. " I know you're there, shame on you for tricking an old lady!" She wore tinted glasses and earpieces, a white cane clutched in her hands. " I've got nothing worth stealing! And don't think I'm going to disappear, you're not gonna take me!"

" Hi," Mickey finally managed to say through his shock. Rita Ann froze at Mickey's voice.

" Is that you?" She asked hopefully.

" It's me. I came home."

" Rickey?" She asked, one hand coming up to touch the side of his face.

" It's Mickey," He corrected softly.

" I know my own grandson's name. It's Rickey. Now come here." Rita Ann allowed him to give her a hug, which she happily returned.

" Okay, I'm Rickey. Of course I am, Rickey, that's me," He muttered, completely overwhelmed by the fact that he was holding his Gran again. Suddenly Rita Ann reached out and smacked him against the cheek. " Ow!"

" You stupid boy! Where have you been!?" She smacked him against the arm, earning another groan from him.

" Stop hitting me!" He insisted.

" It's been days and days! I keep hearing all these stories, people disappearing off the streets! There's nothing official on the download, but there all these rumors and… and whispers! I thought they'd gone and disappeared you!" She said in a panic. Mickey eyed a torn piece of carpet on the stairs behind her. He looked at her sadly.

" That carpet on the stairs, I told you to get it fixed," He said, voice breaking. " You're gonna… fall and break your neck."

" Well you get it fixed for me."

" I should have done, way back. I guess I'm just kinda useless."

" Now, I never said that," Rita Ann assured him.

" I am though," Mickey said, agreeing with a lot of unspoken statements. " And I'm sorry, Gran, I'm so sorry."

" Don't talk like that. Do you know what you need? A nice sit-down and a cup of tea. You got time?" She asked hopefully. Mickey smiled.

" For you, I've got all the time in the world," He responded. How could he leave now? Now that he knew that she was here, that she was alive? He couldn't… he just couldn't… could he?

" You say that, but it's all talk. It's those new friends of yours. I don't trust them."

" What friends are they?" He asked curiously.

" Don't pretend you don't know! You've been seen. Mrs. Chan told me! Driving about all helter-skelter in that van!"

" What van's that then?"

" You know full well!" She said in exasperation as tires screeched on the street. " Don't play games with me! Get inside!" A blue van swerved up to the curve behind Mickey and the blond man who had been at the dump, named Jake, sprung out and grabbed him, yanking him back towards the van's open door.

" I've been looking for you everywhere!" Jake exclaimed, pushing him inside. He jumped in after Mickey and slammed the door shut, the van peeling down the street, leaving Rita Ann calling out for her grandson, Rickey.

" Rickey, you were the one who told us 'you don't contact your family 'cause it puts them in danger'!" Jake said a disbelieving look on his face.

" Yeah, Rickey said that. 'Course I did. Just testing," Mickey said, playing along with the whole 'Rickey' thing.

" I saw them. I taped them. They went 'round Blackfriars gathering up the homeless like the child catcher! They must've took four dozen!"

" The vans were hired out to a company called International Electromatics. But I did a protocol search, turns out that's a dummy company established by guess who," Said the woman driving the van, Mrs. Moore, who was also wearing all black like Jake and she had short cropped ice-blond hair. Mickey paused before asking,

" I don't know. Who?"

" Cybus Industries!" The other two said at the same time, Jake giving him a look.

" Well, now we've got evidence!" Jake announced happily.

" Bad new is, they arrested Thin Jimmy. So that just leaves you," Moore informed Mickey.

" Leaves me what?"

" The number one," Jake told him with a smile. " Top of the list! London's Most Wanted!" Mickey laughed a bit then said,

" Okay, cool… say that again?"

Just after night fall, Jake, Moore and Mickey pulled up outside of a darkened building where a single light was on. Jake jumped out and noted the light, immediately spinning around.

" There's a light on. There's someone inside the base. Mrs. Moore, we've got visitors!" Jake informed as Mickey hopped out. Jake and Moore pulled their guns and ran forward, Mickey following. They paused outside the open door, ready to run in.

" One… two… three, go!" They all bolted inside, pointing their guns at the figure by the fireplace. The figure turned to look at Jake and Moore and Mickey.

" What the hell are you doing?" Came the aggravated sound of Mickey's voice from the person by the fireplace. In fact, the figure looked exactly like Mickey, except dressed all in black, and his face was pulled into an angry expression. Jake and Moore lowered their guns as they glanced between the two look-alikes.

" What are you doing there!?" Asked Jake in confusion.

" What am I doing here?" Asked the Mickey look-a-like. He walked forward and menacingly pointed at Mickey. " What am I doing there?"

With those words, the words of the actual Rickey, Moore and Jake turned their guns on Mickey, who held up his hands, looking confused.

OOOO

Night had brought along a coolness to the air that wasn't too pleasant without a coat, as Selene learned as she, the Doctor, and Rose sat atop a small hill by the road that led up to the Tyler residence. They watched as limos passed and made their way towards the estate, only guessing what guests were arriving. The walk there had actually been rather pleasant, although it was a work out for the feet. The conversation on the way over had been mostly about alternate worlds and such, some of the explanations the Doctor gave, making Selene and Rose's heads hurt.

" They've got visitors," The Doctor mentioned, nodding after a black limo. Selene, who had actually been in a better mood since the walk over rolled her eyes and gave him a look.

" Really? I thought they ran a taxi service," She teased, earning a snort from Rose and a playful shove on the arm from the Time Lord.

" Well, I'm not too sure about the taxi service, but it is February the first, my Mum's birthday. Even in a parallel universe, she still loves a party," Rose muttered, suddenly remembering the date.

" Well, given Pete Tyler's guest list, I wouldn't mind a look," The Doctor said, his voice getting that distant sound that it always got when he slipped into thought. " And there is one guaranteed way of getting inside." He casually removed the psychic paper in its little wallet from inside his coat, holding it between two fingers. Rose and Selene broke into a grin at the sight of it.

" Psychic paper!" Rose exclaimed happily.

" Who do you two wanna be?" He asked as they stood. As they began to walk down the small hill, Selene shook her head, disbelief of this being reality once again hitting her like a ton of bricks.

" Could I see that?" She asked gesturing to the psychic paper. The Doctor saw the excitement in her face and grinned, holding it out to her. She took it gently as they made their way towards the door, looking over the black wallet-like holder around it. Selene shook her head as she flipped it open, briefly glancing over the paper, too fast to see what words were actually there. She handed it back, still grinning. " Amazing. Just… absolutely amazing, I can't believe it's real!" She shook her head and blew out a breath, trying to calm herself. " Sorry, fan-girl moment."

" No, no, it's fine, I always love seeing someone get excited, it helps me remember how brilliant the universe is," He told her with a grin. They stepped up to the man that stood by the door. The Doctor held up the psychic paper to the man. " Hello, Sir, sorry we're late, bit of a, uh, snag with the transportation," The Doctor told him. The man took the psychic paper, read over it and handed it back, giving the three a disdainful look.

" You should have been here at least two hours ago. Get to the kitchen, quickly please, and, for God's sake, put on your uniforms, dammit!" The man hissed at them, gesturing angrily through the doorway. The three quickly rushed inside, Selene taking a moment to shoot him an equally disdain filled look before rushing off to catch up with the Doctor and Rose.

" Well isn't he all sunshine and daisies," She said sarcastically as they rushed into the kitchens, avoiding guests. Rose laughed at her comment, and the Doctor chuckled.

" Not everyone is," He commented. The three continued to laugh quietly as they walked into the kitchen, where they were yelled at by a man who spoke so fast all they could catch (literally) were the uniforms that were tossed at them.

Minutes later, Rose and Selene had changed into a black dress that had a while collar and sleeves lined with white, a white apron around their waists. The skirt of the dress fell to about their knees and both wore black stockings and their shoes from earlier as well as having the top few buttons undone, hair hanging loose. The Doctor wore a tuxedo with a bow tie (Selene desperately resisted the urge to say something about that), and they were each handed a tray to carry out to the party. They were wait staff.

Selene felt perfectly in place; she had been a waitress in Boston, after all. She walked between Rose and the Doctor, balancing a tray of small horderves, and had her other hand held behind her back. The party was filled with men and women dressed in lavish clothing and talking about indistinct things, their voices meshing into each other. They all sported earpieces, of course, and every once and a while, the three time travelers turned waiter and waitresses were stopped by a guest so they could take a new refreshment.

" We could've been anyone," Rose almost growled to the Doctor as they entered a large parlor room that seemed to more resemble a ball room.

" It got us in, didn't it?" He replied from the corner of his mouth.

" You're the one in charge of the psychic paper, we could've been guests! Celebrities; Sir Doctor, Dames Rose and Selene!" Rose said. Selene smiled a bit, pleased Rose included her in that statement, which had actually been a reference to Tooth and Claw, which she hadn't been with them for. " We end up serving? I did enough of this back home!"

" If you want to know what's going on, work in the kitchens," The Doctor said knowledgeably. Selene gave that a thought and then nodded.

" That is actually really true. Back in Boston, at the restaurant I worked at, you could literally find out anything in the kitchens; it was how we kept ourselves entertained really," Selene admitted, remembering the time it had been a slow night so everyone just gathered around and gossiped for at least an hour and a half. Rose rolled her eyes at her friend's comment and the Doctor smirked a tiny bit as he made his way around the room again, both women close to follow.

" According to Lucy, that man over there," The Doctor nodded to a man with chocolate colored skin, graying hair and wearing an expensive suit.

" Who's Lucy?" Rose asked before he could continue. Selene sensed the jealousy again and bit her lip as the two exchanged a rather awkward look.

" She's… carrying the salmon pinwheels," He said, nodding towards another woman on the wait staff.

" Oh, that's Lucy, is it?" Rose asked with a quirked eyebrow.

" Yeah. Lucy says that is the president of great Britain." Rose's brows furrowed.

" What, there's a president, not a prime minister?"

" Seems so!" The Doctor said with a nod.

" Or maybe Lucy's just a bit thick," Suggested Rose in a mutter. The Doctor took a step forward and kept walking around the room, Selene and Rose following again.

" Nice one," Selene said to Rose, in reference of the little insult Rose had been able to sneak in. Rose smirked at her and the two laughed a bit, almost feeling like they were back in school, gossiping about that guy that everyone liked… which they almost were, but that was beside the point.

" Excuse me! Thank you very much." Came Pete Tyler's voice from the staircase. Rose's smile dropped as her ear immediately caught his voice and she made a quick bee-line to the stairs. People gave quiet claps as they gathered around and quieted down. " Thank you very much. Um, I'd just like to say thank you to you all for coming on this, uh… this very special occasion."

Rose, Selene and the Doctor stood off to the side, staring up at Pete, who had his hands clasped behind his back, stumbling over his words a bit. Rose smiled at the sight of her father, and Selene felt that tiny little pull of sadness at the back of her head in regards to her own family, but she pushed it aside, knowing that she'd have to ignore it for… well… probably the rest of her life.

" My wife's… thirty-ninth," He informed, causing the crowd to laugh a bit. He laughed as well. " Trust me on this." He mimicked his campaign posters by giving a subtle thumbs up. " And so, without further ado, here she is, the birthday girl, my lovely wife, Jackie Tyler."

While Rose and Selene watched the two Tyler's on the staircase, the Doctor had his eyes mostly trained on Rose, watching her expressions. Jackie descended the stairs wearing a beautiful black silk dress, her blond hair curled and twisted up into an up-do. Everyone clapped and gave small cheers as she came to stand beside her husband, smiling at everyone.

" Now, I'm not giving a speech, that's what my parties are famous for; no work, no politics, just a few good mates and plenty of black-market whisky." Everyone laughed at her comment, and Jackie smiled and turned to look at the president. " Pardon me, Mr. President. So, yeah! Get on with it! Enjoy, enjoy!" She insisted with a happy voice and a smile. Rose had been watching in disbelief. Everything was so… different. It was like she was watching a television show where the cast members were people from her life playing a character, but it quite obviously wasn't.

Pete and Jackie took each other's hands and walked past the trio, not sparing them a glance. Rose watched them go, a look of undefined emotion on her face.

" You can't stay, even if there was some way of telling them," The Doctor told Rose in a quiet voice.

" 'Course I can't," Rose replied, eyes distant again. " I've still got my Mum at home; my real Mum. I couldn't just leave her, could I? It's just…" She paused, looking at the floor before looking back up. " They've got each other. Mum's got no one."

" She's got you, those two haven't!" The Doctor amended her mistake. " All these different worlds, not one of them gets it right."

" Rose!" Jackie's voice exclaimed joyfully and they all snapped their heads in Jackie's direction, only to see her grinning at her little lap dog. " There's my little girl! Come to Mummy! Come to Mummy!" As Jackie continued to coo over her dog, the Doctor looked over at Rose, a carefully blank look on it. Rose and Selene looked up at him and he began to laugh, earning murderous looks from the both of them.

" Sorry…" He muttered, looking down as he stopped laughing, head bowing like a child who'd been scolded.

OOOO

Mickey hadn't been having much more of a fun time than Rose, Selene and the Doctor; he had been stripped down to his underwear and tied to a chair, being scanned by some odd device to be checked for any sort of weapons and other such things.

" He's clean. No bugs," Jake informed as he stood.

" But this is off the scale," Rickey said, stepping forward to stare at Mickey. " I mean, he's flesh and blood. How did that happen?"

" Well, it could be that Cybus Industries have perfected the science of human cloning. Or your father had a bike." Moore suggested. Something Mickey immediately observed was that Rickey's face seemed to be perpetually locked in a look of anger or displeasure. It never left his face, and it seemed to be his one main emotion.

" And your name is Mickey, not Rickey?" Rickey asked as he went to stand behind Mickey.

" Mickey. Dad was Jackson Smith, used to work at the key cutters in Clifton's Parade. Went to Spain, never came back," Mickey explained, trying to keep his voice even and under control. Rickey bent at the knees to stare at Mickey closer. He exhaled sharply.

" But that's my Dad. So… we're brothers?"

" Be fair. What else could it be?" Questioned Jake.

" I don't know. But he doesn't just look like me, he is exactly the same. There's something else going on here, Jake," Rickey said as he looked Mickey over again.

" S-so who are you lot?" Mickey asked, stuttering a bit.

" We? We are the Preachers, as in Gospel Truth," He said, moving to stand in front of him. He pointed to his ears. " See? No ear-pods. While the rest of the world downloads from Cybus Industries, we, we have got freedom. You're talking to London's Most Wanted! But target number one is Lumic and we are going to bring him down," He told him, leaning in close, that angry look still on his face.

Mickey looked around the room.

" From your kitchen?" He asked. Rickey looked over to Moore and Jake, as if asking for a good response. Jake only smirked. Rickey's head snapped back to look at Mickey.

" You got a problem with that?" He asked harshly.

" No, it's a good kitchen."

" It's an upload from Gemini," Moore announced when a beeping emanated from her computer.

" Who's Gemini?" Asked Mickey in confusion.

" The vans are back. They're moving out to Battersea. Looks like Gemini is right. Lumic is finally making a move," She said, looking up to Rickey.

" And we're right behind him, pack up. We're leaving," Demanded Rickey, eyeing Mickey again. " Get him some proper clothes, he'll be coming with us."

So that's how Mickey ended up in an all black ensemble, sitting in the back of a blue van. He watched as Jake and Moore began to set up their guns, the only sound was the clicking of pieces locking into place, and the revving of the van engine as they sped down the street.

OOOO

Back at the Tyler house, Rose had moved to stay serve in the parlor/ball room and the Doctor had momentarily disappeared from sight, leaving Selene alone and she kept herself awkwardly quiet as she served the party guests. She gave small smiles and nods and tried to avoid any questions given to her, seeing as she wouldn't know how to answer them. She had been standing off to the side by the window when she felt someone place a warm hand on her shoulder. She jumped and spun around, spotting the Doctor. He nodded towards the hallway and she obliged his demand and followed him to the darkened hallway by the kitchens.

" I think I might need your help with something. I need to find a computer of some sort, I need to get on to find out what Cybus Industries is doing. I mean, they've bought all the stores in Britain, they're up to something," The Doctor whispered to her. She nodded and looked around.

" And since a certain Pete Tyler has a company connected with Cybus, and this is in fact his home…" She smirked. " Lets go find us a computer," She grinned as they both made their way down the hall. She paused at a slightly ajar door and he kept walking as she peered inside, spotting a computer. She crossed her arms and smirked, leaning against the doorframe. The Doctor froze and backed up. Selene pointed to the computer with a smirk. He looked around before ducking inside, pulling her with him.

The Doctor shut the door completely, walking over to the computer, pulling his glasses on. He chuckled as he bent over to start his search.

" And this is so much more exciting than any other catering job I have ever done," Selene said to herself as she leaned against the desk beside the computer, watching the Doctor work.

Rose watched Jackie laugh as she spoke with the President of Great Britain. How wonky was this world going to get? She couldn't help but think the Doctor's comment wasn't really true; the fact that Jackie had her. Rose was always popping in then leaving again with the Doctor, leaving her mother alone. But here Jackie had a husband… she had someone, and that made Rose feel just that bit more sad.

" I remember her twenty-first. Pint of cider in the George," Pete said as he stepped up beside Rose, watching his wife. He chuckled a bit and Rose gave a small smile before averting her eyes for a moment.

" Sorry, champagne?" She asked, holding out her champagne tray. Pete looked down at the glasses and took one.

" Oh, might as well, I'm paying for it," He said and the two chuckled a bit.

" It's a big night for you," Rose commented.

" Well, for her. Still, she's happy."

" Yeah, she should be, it's a great party."

" Do you think?" Pete asked with honest curiosity. Rose looked down and bit her lip, glancing back up at him, smiling a bit.

" You can trust me," Rose said in a quiet, guessing tone, trying to remember what phrase he had on his posters. He chuckled.

" Uh-uh, you can trust me on this," He corrected, giving the wink that he always did.

" That's it, sorry, yeah," Rose said with a laugh. " So, um… how long have you two been married?"

" Twenty years," He told her.

" No kids or…"

" We kept putting it off. She said she didn't want to spoil her figure."

" It's not too late, she's only forty," Rose said quietly, keeping the tray balanced.

" Thirty-nine," He jokingly corrected.

" Oh, right, thirty-nine," She agreed, laughing a bit. They both laughed together a bit, which felt completely natural. Pete looked over at Jackie and sighed a bit.

" Still too late. I moved out last month. But we're gonna keep it quiet, you know. It's bad for business," He said quietly. Rose's smile had fallen at the words he'd just spoken. " Why am I telling you all this? We haven't met before, have we? I don't know, you just seem sort of…"

" What?"

" I don't know just sort of… right," He muttered. A man caught his eye and he stepped forward. " Stevie! How's things? How's it going at Torchwood?"

The Doctor and Selene watched as he pulled up a presentation stored on the computer in the back room.

" The most precious thing on this Earth is the human brain." Came John Lumic's voice and Selene watched as the Doctor's eyebrows scrunched up as he peered through his square-framed glasses at the screen. Selene had to admit she'd always loved his glasses. They just made him look all that more attractive and just that bit more adorable. She suddenly found that she was no longer looking at the screen, but she was staring at him as he watched, noticing every movement he made, noting how good he looked in a tuxedo. She quickly looked off to glance out the window into the night, feeling heat rise to her cheeks in a blush.

Selene had to admit she'd found herself staring at him more than once recently. And every time she did, she reminded herself she could not fall for him. She couldn't. He loved Rose and always did and always will. If she fell for the Doctor, she'd become like all the other companions who had as well. She'd end up broken hearted. So, no, she was not falling for the Doctor. She firmly told herself that over and over again as she stared at the window.

You are not falling for the Doctor.

Rose hadn't been able to help herself. She went and found Jackie. There couldn't be any harm in just talking could there?

Jackie had been sitting out on the porch, staring down at her hands. Rose walked out of the doors and stepped over to her, still holding her tray and her position well.

" Mrs. Tyler, is there anything I can get you?" Rose asked. Jackie looked over at her.

" The last twenty years back," She told the younger blond. She laughed a bit.

" I can manage a glass of champagne. Or a nice cup of tea," Rose suggested.

" Oh, that'd do me!" Jackie agreed, smiling up at Rose. The two laughed a bit and Rose carefully sat down beside her.

" My Mum loves that; end of a long night, she never goes straight to bed. She always stays up just to have the last cup of tea."

" Oh, I'm the same!"

" Two sugars."
" And me! And Pete always says you know…" Her smile faded. " Ah, never mind him," She said, trailing off at the end.

" I was talking to him earlier," Rose began. " He's a nice man. You know, bit of a Jack the Lad, I suppose, even if he has got money, but… he's a good bloke. Better than most. He's worth a second chance."

" Are you commenting on my marriage?" Jackie suddenly spat, good mood turned foul.

" No, I was just-"

" Who the hell do you think you are? You're staff! You're nothing but staff! You're just the serving girl, for God's sake! And you are certainly not getting paid. Don't you dare talk to me," Jackie growled before standing and marching back inside, leaving a surprised Rose sitting alone in the cold. There was an hiss and the sound of electronic humming pushed into the air, a bright light blinding the young blond.

She gazed across the lawn to spot figures marching towards the house, making loud clunking sounds as they lifted their legs high and stomped them back to the grass, almost making a mechanic hissing sound as they did so.

" This is the ultimate upgrade, our greatest step into cyberspace," Lumic's voice said in the presentation where the Doctor and Selene had continued to watch.

" Cybus!" The Doctor exclaimed, finally making the connection. His hearts began to beat faster and he snatched up Selene's hand again, yanking her out of the room and towards the guest filled parlor.

He pulled her to a window where Rose now stood and the three stood there, staring out at the now brightly lit lawn. The Doctor cupped his hands against the cold class and peered out, his breath fogging up the glass.

" It's happening again!" He whispered fearfully.

" What do you mean?" Rose asked shakily.

" I've seen them before."

" What are they?"

They came into full view. A row of metal men with hollow eyes, slits for mouths and bulky bodies. They glistened in the light as they marched in perfect sync, the square arches on their heads helping to create eerie shadows on the manicured lawns.

" Cybermen," Both Selene and the Doctor stated. Now, if there had been a scarier moment in Selene's life, she would have been thankful. However, this was now the most horrifying moment. She knew what the Cybermen could do, how destructive and evil they could be, and she did not want that anger and destruction trained on herself or her friends.

Glass shattered as Cybermen burst through windows, marching into the room. Guests screamed and huddled together, backing away from the metal monsters. The Doctor wrapped his arms around Rose's and Selene's shoulders, backing them up from the window, but the trio made a run for it as a line of the Cybermen began to march out of the door beside them. They merged with the crowd as the creatures surrounded them. The president's earpiece rang and he answered with a calm anger.

" Mr. Lumic," He said.

" Mr. President. I suppose a remark about crashing the party would be appropriate at this point," Lumic said with a laugh.

" I forbade this!"

" These are my children, Sir! Would you deny my family?"

" What are they, robots?" Rose asked in a whisper. Selene kept her eyes trained on the nearest Cyberman and shook her head.

" No, worse and far more scary," She told her friend quietly.

" Who were these people?" The president demanded of Lumic.

" Doesn't matter!" Was Lumic's response.

" They're people?" Rose asked in shock.

" They were," Replied the Doctor in a monotone, staring at the glinting metal men. " Till they had all their humanity taken away. That's a living brain jammed inside a cybernetic body, with a heart of steel. All emotions removed."

" Why no emotions?"

" Because it hurts," He told her.

" And emotions make us human… these things aren't human and aren't meant to be. As Mr. Lumic would put it, it's supposed to be 'the ultimate upgrade,'" Selene added on just before the president started yelling again.

" I demand to know, Lumic!" He shouted. " These people, who were they?"

" The homeless and wretched and useless! Until I saved then and elevated them and gave them life eternal! And now I leave you in their capable hands. Goodnight, Sir. Goodnight, Mr. President!" And with that, Lumic disconnected.

A Cyberman stepped forward to be less than a foot away from the president.

" We have been upgraded," It told him, it's slit of a mouth lighting up blue as it spoke. It pronounced everything distinctly and clearly, it's voice almost double-toned.

" Into what?" Demanded the Doctor.

" The next level of mankind. We are human point two. Every citizen will receive a free upgrade. You will become like us."

" I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for what's been done to you," The president said, walking down a row of Cybermen, staring at their metal faces forever locked in indifference. " But listen to me. This experiment ends tonight!"

" Upgrading is compulsory," The Cyberman stated.

" And if I refuse?"

" Don't," The Doctor said with a slight shake to his voice. Rose saw the concern on his face and immediately knew this wasn't about to end well.

" What if I refuse?"
" I'm telling you, don't!" The Doctor pleaded.

" What happens if I refuse?" Demanded the president one last time.

" Then you are not compatible."

" What happens then?"

" You will be deleted," The Cyberman informed.

Well, there's that famous line for you… Selene thought grimly as she watched the Cyberman lift a heavy arm and drop it's hand onto the president's shoulder with lightning speed. Blue electricity pulsated across the president's body, affectively stopping his heart, making him collapse. All hell then broke loose.

Guests began to scream and run, Pete was calling for his wife in concern, and worst of all, the Cybermen were killing anyone they could get their hands on. In the fray, Selene had been pushed away from the Doctor and Rose, being shoved into the wall. It took her a moment to shake the blurriness from her eyes as she looked in front of her to see a familiar and unwelcome sight; the glinting 'C' that was displayed on the chest of a Cyberman. She quickly began to back away as it lifted it's arm, reaching towards her. She luckily felt two hands yank her backwards just as she was about to be touched. She tumbled backwards into the Doctor's chest, affectively earning a blush from herself before he grabbed his companion's hands and dragged them towards a broken window.

" There's nothing we can do!" He told them. As they leapt out, Rose wrenched her hand from the Doctor's turning back to the house.

" My Mum's in there!" She said, staring back at the chaos. The sound of buzzing electricity met their ears as the Doctor snatched her hand again.

" Not your Mother, Rose, come on!" Selene insisted as they continued to run from the house. They skid on their feet, turning away from another line of Cybermen approaching the house, and turned to run the other way. They were about to round the corner when Pete jumped through the window.

" Pete! Pete!" Rose called out, and Pete began to follow the three as the rounded the corner of the house. As they froze, the Doctor looked at Pete.

" Pete, is there a way out?" He asked.

" The side gates!" Pete pointed towards them and they made that their destination. As they began to run, no longer holding hands or arms to keep up with each other, Pete looked at the Doctor. " Who are you, how do you know so much?"

" You wouldn't believe it in a million years!" The Doctor shouted as they all skidded to a stop as more Cybermen came forward. They paused as they saw no way out, only seeing two figures running towards them, backlit by headlights.

" Who's that?" Rose asked.

" Get behind me!" Rickey called out as he and Jake ran forward. The four ran towards them and ducked behind the two as they shot at the Cybermen. The bullets bounced off harmlessly but it did stop their marching. Rose stared at Rickey, thinking it was Mickey and said,

" Oh my God, look at you! I thought I'd never see you again!" She pulled him into a hug, his face contorted in anger, as usual. He pulled away and stared down at her.

" Yeah, no offence, sweetheart, but who the hell are you?" He asked Rose, who stared at him, shocked. His eyes wandered over to Selene who met his eyes and he looked her over. " And who the hell are you?" She raised her eyebrows at him just as they heard Mickey call out,

" Rose! Selene!" They spun around to see him running towards them. " That's not me! That's, like, the other one!"

" Oh, as if things weren't bad enough, now there are two Mickey's?" Complained the Doctor, looking upset. Rickey's head snapped in the Doctor's direction.

" It's Rickey," He corrected, eyes flickering to Selene for a moment.

" But there's more of them," Mickey informed, looking at the Cybermen, which were now surrounding them.

" Put the guns down, bullets won't stop them," The Doctor stated. His request fell on deaf ears as Mickey and Jake began to fire their guns again. Selene jumped at the sudden sound and its close proximity and she covered her ears, wincing. " No! Stop shooting, now!" The Doctor made Jake stop firing as the Cybermen continued to advance. " We surrender! Hands up!" Everyone raised their hands to the air, looking around. " There's no need to damage us, we're good stock. We volunteer for the upgrade program. Take us to be processed."

" You are rouge element," A Cyberman informed them.

" But we surrender!" The Doctor said again.

" You are incompatible."

" But this is a surrender!" He said yet again.

" You will be deleted."

" But we're surrendering! Listen to me! We surrender!"

Selene stepped up next to him.

" I don't think that's gonna work anymore… I really, really wish it would, but I don't think it will…" She said to him, eyes still fearfully trained on the Cybermen. She knew they got out of this in the show, but with her here, little things changed, and this could be one of them.

" You are inferior, man will be reborn as Cyberman, but you will perish under maximum deletion." It stretched its hand out towards them. " Delete. Delete. Delete. Delete."

To Be Continued…

Afterword: And there you have it, chapter four! Hope it was okay, it was actually kind of difficult to fit Selene into this properly, so I hope it was okay!

Review replies!

fanfreak4ever: I'm really glad you've enjoyed the story so far! And I've been watching every new episode in the season each Saturday XD It's so far so good in my opinion! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, thanks again for the review!

TheGirlWhoImagined: I'm glad you're liking the story so far and I hope this chapter was okay! Thanks again for the review!

loulouflowerpower: Thanks so much for the review! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

aandm20: I actually took that into consideration after I got your review, and I think your right, it wouldn't mess anything up, so, I decided to add in the beginning that she did eventually tell them the name of the ship. Thanks again and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
grapejuice101: Yeah, the end of that episode always makes me cry =( Thank you for helping me out with that chapter, by the way, same with the dream at the beginning of this one. I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks again!

notwritten: Glad you think it's interesting and hope this chapter was okay! Thanks again!

Mathea2005: Hope this chapter was up to expectations! Thanks again for the review!

Gamerlady123: Yeah, that episode is so sad DX Also, I will do the Shakespearian Code, I love that episode so much! I look forward to writing it! Thanks again for the review and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
recklessl0ve: That episode is just always sad… always will be… anyway, I'm glad you liked it and hope you liked this chapter! Thanks again!

E-man-dy-S: I hope you liked the chapter, and I'm glad your liking the chapter thus far! Thanks again!

And thanks to those who have also added this to their story subscriptions or their favorites! Means the world!

Again, I hope this chapter was okay, I'm not sure if Selene fit in that well. I hope you're all enjoying the new season as well! I really enjoyed 'A Town Called Mercy' last night! Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter and please review to let me know how I've been doing! Also, anyone who reads this that reads my Sherlock fic, I'll be updating that one next, so the wait will be over soon! Thanks again you guys, reviews please!

~Mary