Disclaimer: I unfortunately do not own Doctor Who (the worlds, the aliens/creatures etc.) or any of the characters. I only own my OC Selene.
5. Age Of Steel
" 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."
The Doctor's hand shot out and a large jet of golden energy shot out from the recharging power cell in his hand. The energy hit the first Cyberman and then created arks, hitting all the ones that surrounded them. The force of the energy made them bend backwards, suddenly disintegrating. Everyone stared in shock, arms slowly lowering.
" What the hell was that?" Rickey asked as he stared around.
" Or how about instead, run!" The Doctor shouted as more Cybermen began to approach. He took off in a sprint, the others close to follow. A car horn honked and Mrs. Moore came driving up in the blue van.
" Everybody, in!" She called out the window to the panicking group. As everyone moved to jump inside, Pete went to go back into the house. The Doctor ran over and grabbed his arm, halting his movement.
" I've got to go back, my wife's in there!" Pete begged.
" Anyone inside that house is dead," The Doctor said rather bluntly. " If you want to help, then don't let her die for nothing. You've got to come with us right now!" The Doctor pushed Pete towards the van and then turned to Rose, who stared into the house through the shattered windows. " Rose, she's not your mother."
" I know," She told him.
" Come on."
The two ran to the van and jumped in, slamming the door shut.
" Finished chatting? I've never seen a slower get away in my life!" Moore called to them, speeding off.
Everyone besides Rickey, Moore and Jake were all cramped in the back, attempting to catch their breath. Selene swept a strand of hair from her face, leaning back against the wall of the van where she sat next to the Doctor. Moments passed in silence as they escaped the Cybermen.
" What was that thing?" Rickey asked, turning to face them all from the front, voice still grim. He was pointing at the power cell in the Doctor's hand.
" Little bit of technology from my home," The Doctor informed, staring at it.
" It stopped glowing, has it run out?" Mickey asked with concern.
" It's on a revitalizing loop. It'll charge back up in four hours." The Doctor put the power cell back in his pocket and sighed a bit.
" Right, so we haven't got a weapon anymore," Rickey said, eyes still on the Doctor.
" Yeah, we've got weapons. Might not work on those metal things, but they're good enough for men like him," Jake spat, looking at Pete, who was staring at his shaking hands.
" Oh, you know, just laid a trap that's wiped out the government and left Lumic in charge!" Pete's head snapped up and he glared at the younger man.
" If I was part of all that, you think I'd leave my wife inside?" Pete asked, sounding completely insulted.
" Maybe your plan went wrong!" Suggested Rickey. " Still gives us the right to execute you though."
" Talk about executions, you'll make me your enemy! Take some really good advice, you don't want to do that," Warned the Doctor, his tone threatening. Selene nodded a bit, rubbing her head, which was beginning to hurt from all the back and forth banter.
" All the same, we have evidence that says Pete Tyler's been working for Lumic since twenty point five," Rickey finally shot back. The comment was followed by silence, in which Rose looked over at Pete.
" Is that true?" She asked, voice quiet and worried.
" Tell 'em, Mrs. M."
" We've got a government mole who feeds us information, Lumic's private files, his South American operations, the lot. Secret broadcasts twice a week," Moore told them. Pete sighed.
" Secret broadcasts from Gemini?" He asked. Rickey glared at the older man, jabbing a finger at him.
" And how do you know that?" He asked.
" I'm Gemini, that's me!"
" Yeah, you would say that!"
" Encrypted wavelength six-five-seven using binary nine. That's the only reason I was working for Lumic- to get information. I thought that I was broadcasting to the security services. What do I get? Scooby-Doo and his gang. They even got the van!" Pete exclaimed in exasperation. Selene rolled her eyes as the Doctor looked around the van a bit, nodding.
" In defense of the Mystery Machine, Scooby-Doo was a great show," Selene said with a shrug, crossing her legs. Mickey shushed her as he tried to clear things up a bit.
" No, no, no, but the preachers know what they're doing. Rickey said he's London's most wanted!" Mickey said, thinking out loud.
" Yeah, that's not exactly…" Rickey trailed off.
" Not exactly what?"
" I'm London's most wanted for… parking tickets…"
The Doctor smirked, which then formed into a smile as he nudged Selene a bit, seeing her smile as well. She rolled her eyes and swept hair out of her face.
" Great," Muttered Pete, his head lolling backwards to hit the wall of the van.
" Yeah, but they were deliberate! I was fighting the system. Park anywhere that's me!" Rickey defended sharply, a glare sent Pete's way.
" Good policy, I do much the same!" The Doctor commented with a smile.
" Come to think of it that's really true…" Selene muttered. The Doctor chuckled and continued on.
" I'm the Doctor, by the way, if anyone's interested!"
" Selene," She said, raising a hand in greeting.
" And I'm Rose. Hello," Rose said.
" Even better, that's the name of my dog…" Pete said with a sigh. " Still, at least I've got the catering staff on my side."
" I knew you weren't a traitor," Rose told him.
" Why's that then?"
Rose looked over at the Doctor and Selene, who both gave her a look, telling her not to mention anything about being his daughter. Rose looked down at her lap, shutting her eyes for a moment.
" I just did," She decided on saying, giving a slightly strained smile.
" They took my wife!" Pete whispered in despair.
" She might still be alive," Rose tried to comfort, feeling something pull in her stomach. Even though this universe's Jackie wasn't her mother, it still seemed as if she was…
" That's even worse… Cause that's what Lumic does. He takes the living and he turns them into those machines."
" Cybermen," The Doctor commented grimly. " They're called Cybermen." Selene took notice of the earpieces still in Pete's ears.
" You should probably take those ear-pods off now, Pete," Selene suggested, holding out her hand. " If Lumic made those, he could easily be spying on us." Pete removed them and placed them in her hand. She handed them over to the Doctor, who used the Sonic to short them out.
" He's overreached himself, he's still just a business man. He's assassinated the president. All we need to do is get to the city, and inform the authorities. Because I promise you, this ends tonight!" The Doctor said firmly, a look of determination written on his face.
Everyone was quiet at that statement while the van bounced along. No one really had anything to say in response; they all wanted it to be true. Selene caught Jake glancing at the gun that still sat in his hand, which they all knew wouldn't work against the Cybermen, something that he even pointed out to them. She sighed and leaned forward.
" I know how tempting it'll be to try and shoot whatever gun or weapon you have left at these… things, but you're assumptions earlier about them not working are completely right. You shoot at them, then you're only going to give them an actual reason for them to try and kill you. Whatever you do, don't shoot, I'm begging that you listen to me," Selene said, eyeing all the Preachers. Jake set the gun down, looking off with a very slight nod. Rickey smirked as he looked at her.
" You're smart. Smart and pretty, I like it," Rickey commented, the smirk still on his face. Selene's eyebrows shot up at his comment and she blinked a few times. Rose's mouth dropped open a bit in shock and the Doctor turned a heated glare on the Mickey-look-a-like. That was rather uncalled for! Mickey dropped his head into his hands.
" I think I'm gonna be sick… my doppelganger is flirting with Selene… she's like a little sister to me!" Mickey groaned. Rickey shot him a look.
" Doesn't mean she's like a sister to me, I barely know her," He said. Selene shrunk back against the wall of the van, ducking her head as she tried to pretend she currently didn't exist. Mickey was right; they were like siblings, and the fact Rickey was flirting with her didn't make her feel all that comfortable. She stayed silent the rest of the van ride.
OOOO
Lumic sat in his automatic wheelchair, staring triumphantly at the Cybermen before him. They glistened slightly in the light, their blank eyes staring out into nothing with an emotionless look on their faces, which would never leave.
" My everlasting children! Tell me, how does it feel?" Lumic asked.
" We feel nothing," A Cyberman replied, voice as cold as its metal exterior.
" But in your mind, what do you think?"
" We think the same. We are uniform."
" But you think… of what?" Lumic demanded to know, acknowledging that they did in fact think something.
" We think of the humans. We think of their difference and their pain. They suffer in the skin. They must be upgraded," The Cyberman replied, causing a twinge of slight excitement in Lumic's head.
" Excellent! Then let's begin. Computer, identify: John Lumic."
" Voice print acknowledged," Replied the computer.
" Activate ear-pod primary sequence," He demanded, face blank.
" Please state area of activation."
" The City of London. I've just declared independence. Begin transmission!" There was a pause as the computer started said transmission. A smirk arose to Lumic's face. " You will come to me, my dear children. The Immortal Ones!" A grin spread across his face as the computer switched to a news broadcast.
" All of London has been sealed off! There are reports of an army, an army of metal men!" Said a panicked reporter. " All citizens should remove their ear-pods! I repeat, remove their ear-pods! London's been placed under martial law. If your hearing this, stay in your homes! I repeat, stay in your homes!"
OOOO
The Preachers van came to a screeching halt as they spotted a mass of people all headed in the same direction, all stepping out into the street regardless of the cold. Their eyes were blank and trained ahead of themselves, a destination in mind that no one spoke.
" Oh this is not good!" The Doctor said in a panic, immediately launching himself to the side door and yanking it open. Everyone jumped out and stared at the citizens.
" What the hell?" Jake asked.
" What's going on?" Rose questioned with worry.
" It's the ear-pods, Lumic's taken control," The Doctor replied as they began to walk in the same direction of all the other people. The cold bit at their cheeks and their breath clung in the air in little white clouds. Selene briskly rubbed her arms for a moment while Rose asked,
" Can't we just, I don't know, take them off?" Selene shook her head quickly as the Doctor yanked Rose's hand away from where she was reaching to pull a set off a younger man.
" Don't. 'Cause a brainstorm," The Doctor explained. When Rose shot him a look Selene leaned over and whispered,
" In simpler words, it'll kill them."
" Human race!" The Doctor exclaimed, and Selene sensed a small rant about to form. " For such an intelligent lot, you aren't half susceptible. Give anyone the chance to take control, and you submit!" The Doctor began weaving through people, staring at their faces with his brows scrunched. " Sometimes I think you like it! Easy life…" He trailed off and Selene rolled her eyes resisting the urge to make an Avengers reference about Loki. She bit her tongue hard to make sure she didn't say it.
" Eh! Come and see!" Jake whispered from where he and Rickey were crouched by the corner of a wall. In a flash the Doctor and Moore rushed over, leaving Selene, Rose, Pete and Mickey to follow. They all peered around the corner curiously as to what Jake wanted them to see.
People were exiting their homes, walking like zombies into the street where they then walked along side a squad of Cybermen, who seemed to be leading them elsewhere.
" Where do you think they're going?" Selene asked just before Rose could.
" I don't know… Lumic must have a base of operation.
" Battersea," Pete confirmed. " That's where he was building his prototypes."
" Why's he doing it?" Rose asked curiously, head turning to look back at the Cybermen. Pete paused before giving the answer.
" He's dying. This all started out as a way of prolonging life, keeping the brain alive at any cost."
" Thing is, I've seen Cybermen before, haven't I?" Rose asked the Doctor, looking over at the Time Lord. " That head, those handle shapes in Van Statten's museum. The Doctor gave a slight nod, brown eyes peering ahead of them.
" Oh, there are Cybermen in our universe. They started on an ordinary world, just like this, then swarmed across the galaxy. This lot are a parallel version, and they're starting from scratch, right here on Earth," The Doctor explained, voice distant like it often was when he explained things.
" What the hell are you two on about?" Pete asked, staring at the two like they were crazy.
" Never mind that! Come on, we need to get out of the city," Rickey insisted, facing the group. " Okay, split up. Mrs. Moore, you look after that lot. Jake, distract them, go right, I'll go left. We'll meet back at Bridge Street. Move." With that, Rickey and Jake took off. Mickey spun to look at the group.
" I'm going with him," He announced, quickly hugging Selene and giving a brief kiss to Rose before running off after Rickey.
" Come on, let's go," Moore insisted as a troop of Cybermen got closer. They all took off down the street, sending Mickey one last glance before their sprint became life or death. Selene was glad she was still wearing her Converse, seeing as they were fairly broken in and easy to run in. She didn't expect the Doctor to skid to a stop so suddenly, so she rammed into his back, making a sound somewhere close to,
" Oof!"
The Doctor grabbed her arm as she stumbled and she saw the reason for the sudden cease of motion; another group of Cybermen marching in front of them. The group glanced around and then spotted an alley.
" There!" The Doctor shouted before they all bolted down the alleyway, Cybermen still following.
Rickey ran as fast as he could, feet pounding against the pavement. He then noticed a familiar face following him; Mickey. They both slowed to a stop, breathing shallow.
" Which way? I don't know where we are," Mickey asked.
" Did they see us?" Rickey asked.
" Do they know where we are?"
" I bet they saw us. I bet they can see in the dark."
" I bet they've got satellites," Mickey thought out loud, all of their thoughts overlapping.
" I bet they saw us in the dark," Rickey concluded.
" They know where we are," Both said at the same time, both heads snapping to look at each other.
" I don't get it, what is it with you?" Rickey asked, face still scrunched up in an angry look, like always. " You are exactly like me."
" I don't know. I reckon your braver," Mickey told him.
" Oh, yeah, ten times," Rickey agreed quickly, nodding. " Still, your friends aren't bad. I'll give you that. Especially Selene." Mickey groaned and ran a hand down his face at the mention of Selene.
" Oh, that's the Doctor and Rose. Selene now too. I just tag along behind."
" Well, then, you're not that bad."
Mickey looked at Rickey with surprised.
" You really think?" He asked.
" Yeah, I suppose," Rickey replied. There was a pause as they looked around for another minute. " But what about Selene? She seems different than the rest of you, not sure why."
" She's just a very… interesting person. She actually fell into my dimension from another one, which should be completely impossible. Then again, I guess that could be her nickname, huh? Impossible Selene," Mickey muttered the last bit with a smirk. Rickey smirked as well. There was the familiar sound of metallic pounding and they turned to see a large group of Cybermen marching towards them.
" Cybermen," Mickey said.
" Split up!" Both said in unison before taking off in opposite directions.
The Doctor yanked Selene behind a set of garbage bins that conveniently formed a wall to hide them all from the sight of the Cybermen. Rose, Pete, and Mrs. Moore followed and they all crouched down close to the damp pavement as the robotic men closed in. The pounding of their metal feet got closer and louder, and they all tried to stay as quiet as they could. Selene managed to quiet her quickened breath, which was beginning to slow down. She was never one for running; she always found it easier to walk or ride a bike somewhere. But she knew she'd be getting used to all the running since she was traveling with the Doctor now. An awful lot of running to do…
They were all crouched close together, shoulder-to-shoulder, knee-to-knee. The Cybermen stopped marching just in front of the garbage bins. Rose tightly gripped Pete's hand in fear. Had they found them? The Doctor slowly pulled out the Sonic and held it up, pushing the button and a frequency just a bit higher than it normally made pulsated into the air. The Cybermen turned and marched on. As they passed, they all stood slowly, watching them disappear around a corner. The Doctor nodded down the street and whispered,
" Go."
Rickey came bolting down an alley, heart racing as he thought he'd evaded the troop of Cybermen. He fell to the ground as he encountered the group of metal men advancing on him from a different direction. He scrambled to his feet without any means of grace and took off running again, not caring where he turned. He kept throwing glances over his shoulder as the Cybermen continued to near. He thought he might be in the clear…
But there was a chain-link fence blocking his escape. He gripped the cold metal and saw Mickey come running up on the other side.
" Come on! Come on!" Mickey urged as Rickey began to climb the fence. " Come on!" As Rickey just neared the top, inches away from being able to hoist himself over, a Cyberman swiftly snatched his ankle and a visible electric shock riddled his body. A scream of agony left him as Mickey shouted,
" NO!"
Rickey fell from the fence and hit the ground with a solid thud. Mickey stared in shocked horror at Rickey's body, which lay unmoving on the ground. His gaze swept up to the Cybermen, which now just stood there, bland eyes staring through the fence at him. They didn't move. They didn't speak. They just stood. With an angry expression mimicking one of Rickey's crossing his face, Mickey backed away from the sight and clattered into a trash bin before running away down an alley.
The sound of feet pounding against the pavement echoed around the eerily empty streets and bounced off the walls of buildings. The Doctor, Rose, Pete, Selene and Mrs. Moore had been running without stopping for a good few solid minutes, rounding sharp corners and down long streets.
" Alright! Alright, I think we can stop," The Doctor told them as he slowed to a stop, taking in deep breaths. Selene let out a soft groan of exhaustion and leaned against a nearby wall, puffing out a breath before taking in a few more. She blinked a few times and shook her head.
" This is just like gym class in high school… only more dangerous," She informed everyone with little breath, swiping more hair from her face. Rose smirked slightly at the comment, nodding in agreement. They all stayed quiet as they caught their breath, none of them really having anything to say. Then, a familiar blond man came running up.
" I ran past the river! You should have seen it! The whole city's on the march. Hundreds of Cybermen all down the Thames!" Jake told them, voice almost tinged with what sounded like slight excitement, but clearly filled with worry. Selene's eye caught a lone figure running under a bridge and she felt a tug in her stomach. That was Mickey… only Mickey… she knew what had happened. She cast her blue eyes to the dark pavement sadly. " Here he is!" Jake grinned.
Mickey stopped a few feet away and his face caught the light.
" Which one are you?" Jake asked cautiously. Tears were stinging at Mickey's eyes and his throat felt thick.
" I'm sorry, the Cybermen… he couldn't…" Mickey attempted to say, his voice cracking.
" Are you Rickey?" Silence. " Are you Rickey?"
" Mickey, that's you isn't it?" Rose asked hopefully.
" Yeah," He replied at the same time Selene nodded slowly. Rose rushed forward and gripped Mickey in a tight hug, which he returned before he looked at Mrs. Moore and Jake who were staring at him in shock. " He tried. He was runnin'. There was too many of them!"
Jake quickly turned away, tears brimming in his eyes and he tried to fight them back.
" Shut it," Jake told Mickey sharply.
" There was nothin' I could do…"
" I said just shut it! Don't even talk about him! You're nothin', you are! Nothin'…" Jake muttered, looking off. Mickey looked at the ground as he felt someone pull him in for a hug.
" Give me a hug…" Selene whispered. Selene pressed her face in his shoulder and rubbed his back as he shakily shut his eyes and hugged back.
" We can mourn him when London is safe. For now, we move on," The Doctor told everyone, voice quiet but authoritative. " We have to get to Lumic's center of operation if we're going to shut him down. Let's head back to the van so we can get there as soon as possible."
OOOO
The van ride had been sickly quiet. No one wanted to speak and no one had one word to say. Selene held Mickey's hand tightly as he stared blankly at the floor. The Doctor had been rubbing his eyes and the bridge of his nose and ran his hands through his hair like he usually did when the stress came a bit too much to bear. When the van stopped everyone quickly clambered out, the atmosphere a bit to sad and thick to stand anymore.
The group climbed up a small embankment that was just across the river from the Battersea Power Station. A large zeppelin hovered over it and the lights blazed brightly inside. There was a moment as everyone registered what was before them.
" The whole of London's been sealed off and the entire population's been taken inside that place," The Doctor said, nodding to the large building. " To be 'converted'."
" We've got to get in there and shut it down," Rose stated the idea on everyone's mind. Selene nodded.
" It'll be complicated but it has to be done," She agreed.
" And how do we do that?" Mickey asked, shooting the three a look. The Doctor sucked in a breath and said,
" Oh, I'll think of something."
" And it better be clever," Selene teased, lightly elbowing the Doctor's side. That elicited a smirk from him.
" You're just making this up as you go along!" Mickey finally concluded.
" Yep!" The Doctor confirmed, eyes once again trained on the Power Plant. " But I do it brilliantly." Rose smirked and Mickey eventually gave a nod.
" So true," Selene said, voicing the other two's thoughts. " We'd probably all be dead if he didn't come up with split second plans." There was a pause where no one spoke and Selene looked around. " Well, shouldn't we get a floor plan or something to find out how to get in?" She suggested slowly. Everyone looked at her. " What? I'm just saying, it would be a whole hell lot easier if we knew where to go in."
" I was just about to suggest that…" Muttered the Doctor. Selene smirked.
" I guess I just jumped to your conclusion then," She joked, earning a high-five from Rose. She gestured back to the van. Allons-y! She thought mentally as the Doctor nodded and walked back to the vehicle, Moore following closely.
Moore pulled out a Cybus Industries laptop and searched through some files before pulling one up. It loaded as they all waited in the chilly air, noses turning pink. They were sitting on a weathered picnic table, facing the Power Plant. The Doctor pulled on his glasses as he peered at the screen.
" That's a schematic of the old factory," Moore explained once a 3D model of the building popped up. " Look, cooling tunnels underneath the plant, big enough to walk through."
" We go under and then up to the control center," The Doctor said, pointing to the diagram.
" Mm."
" There's another way in. Through the front door. If they've taken Jackie for upgrading, that's how she'll get in," Pete said, looking at everyone.
" You can't just go strollin' up!" Jake spat, shooting the older man a look.
" Or we could…" Moore said. Everyone gave her a confused look as she pulled out decoy ear-pods. The Doctor picked one up and examined it. " With these. Fake ear-pods. Dead. No signal. But put them on and the Cybermen would mistake you for one of the crowd!"
" Then that's my job," Pete insisted. The Doctor sighed.
" You'd have to show no emotion, none at all," The Doctor warned.
" One little blip of anything would give you away and you'd be killed immediately," Selene added on, worry crossing her face from where she sat cross-legged on the tabletop.
" How many of those you've got?" Rose asked.
" Just two sets," Moore told her.
" Okay. If that's the best way of finding Jackie…" She stood. " Then I'm comin' with ya."
" Why does she matter to you?" Pete asked in confusion, brows scrunching.
" We haven't got time. Doctor, I'm going with him, and that is that," Rose stated firmly.
" No stopping you is there?" The Doctor asked.
" Nope."
The Doctor tossed her the ear-pod he held.
" Tell you what, we can take the ear-pods at the same time, give people their minds back, so they don't walk into that place like sheep," The Doctor said, a small plan beginning to form. " Jakey Boy!" The Doctor took off and ran back up the embankment, Jake following. " Lumic's transmitting the control signal, it must be from over there." The Doctor pulled out the Sonic and pointed it across the river and clicked it on. He raised it upwards till it aligned with the zeppelin and it beeped a few times. " There it is! See? Great big transmitter. Good thing Lumic likes showing off. Reckon you can take it out?"
" Consider it done," Jake told him, grinning.
" Mrs. Moore! Selene!" The Doctor called out as he ran back down to them. " Would you care to accompany me into the cooling tunnels?"
" How could I refuse an offer of cooling tunnels?" Moore replied with a joking tone. The Doctor turned his gaze onto Selene. She grinned.
" I would love to accompany you, Dear Sir," She joked, bowing to the Doctor. He grinned at her. She really was something! She honestly could make anyone laugh or smile, it had to be a talent of hers. Selene straightened up and sent him a playful wink before tossing strands of tangled hair from her eyes. The Doctor faced the river again, pulling off his glasses.
" We attack on three sides; above, between, below. We get to the control center, we stop the conversion machines," The Doctor planned out rapidly.
" What about me?" Mickey suddenly asked. Everyone turned to face him.
" Mickey!" The Doctor said, almost sounding surprised. " You can… um…"
" What? Stay out of trouble? Be the Tin Dog? No, those days are over. I'm going with Jake," Mickey said, a tone of finality in his voice. The Doctor just stared at him.
" I don't need you, idiot!" Jake spat angrily. Mickey marched over to him.
" I'm not an idiot! Got that!?" Everyone stared at the harsh yell Mickey gave. " I'm offering to help," He said, voice softer. Jake merely turned and walked off, muttering,
" Whatever."
As Mickey began to follow, he turned at a voice.
" Mickey!" The Doctor had called. " Good luck."
" Yeah, you too," Mickey agreed. " Rose, I'll see you later."
" Yeah, you better," Rose told him, looking serious.
" And you too, Selene," Mickey added, nodding to her. Selene nodded.
" We can complain about running once you get back," She said with a tiny smirk.
" If we survive this, I'll see you back at the TARDIS," The Doctor told him. Mickey nodded and the Doctor smiled a bit.
" That's a promise," Mickey told them all, smiling before turning and following Jake. He glanced back once more to see the Doctor tightly hugging Rose, who returned the embrace.
" Good luck!" He told the blond with a smile. Rose quickly hugged Selene before she and Pete departed. Mickey saw the Doctor put a hand on Selene's back as they gave each other a one armed hug as they began to walk away. Mickey's face fell and he walked away.
Moore was the first of the three to descend into the icy cooling tunnels. As she climbed down the ladder she hissed a bit.
" It's freezing in here!" She announced.
" It's like winter in a box," Selene agreed as she climbed down next, hands throbbing from the cold metal of the ladder. The Doctor soon followed and asked,
" Any sign of a light switch?" The tunnels were pitch black, not a speck of light besides the moonlight filtering in from the hatch above them.
" Can't see a thing," Moore muttered, looking around, pulling her backpack off. " But I've got these! A device for every occasion!" She removed two headbands that had lights on them.
" Oh!" The Doctor muttered, sounding a bit excited as he was handed one.
" Put it on." The Doctor pulled it on, messing his hair up further. In Selene's opinion, it looked perfect even when it was messy. Made him look even hotter…
Stop it, Selene! She mentally shouted at herself, tearing her eyes away from him as she rubbed her arms briskly.
" Haven't got a hotdog in there, have you? I'm starving," The Doctor asked, peering into the bag. Moore shot him an amused look as she pulled her headlamp on.
" Of all things to wish for! That's mechanically recovered meat," She told him.
" I know," He said in response, smiling. " It's the Cyberman of food, but it's tasty. Don't you think so, Selene?"
" Of course it is! Though anytime someone mentions what they think could be in it, I suddenly loose my appetite," She commented as Moore removed something else from her bag.
" A proper torch as well," She said, handing it to Selene.
" Shall we see if this can illuminate our situation?" Selene asked before flicking it on and shinning it around. The light caught on the face of a frozen Cyberman. A line of frozen Cybermen. Her heart just about stopped.
" Already, converted, just put on ice," The Doctor muttered, eyeing the metal people. He took a step around Selene. " Come on!" As they took a few more steps the Doctor stopped before a Cyberman and Selene shone the flashlight on its face. The Doctor tapped his knuckle against its face. Nothing. " Let's go slowly…"
The three continued slowly down the tight passage, keeping their lights on the Cybermen.
" Keep an eye out for trip systems," He mentioned. They kept moving and the metal on the walls brushed Selene's bare arm, stinging sharply. A sudden thought hit Selene.
" You don't think that our body heat could… you know… thaw them out and turn them on, do you?" She asked as she avoided stepping on a Cyberman's foot. The Doctor pulled a thinking face, nose scrunched up, lips pursed.
" No, I don't think so. These should all be controlled electronically, they should only wake up if they're asked to by who ever put them into sleep mode…" He trailed off. " But just in case I'm wrong, let's keep a wary eye, shall we?"
" Oh, yes, we shall," Selene muttered, keeping the light trained on each Cyberman she passed.
OOoOO
Outside the Battersea Power Plant, Cybermen led groups of hypnotized citizens towards conversion rooms. Robotic voices announced which chambers were open and ready to be used. Rose and Pete ran to hide behind a broken wooden fence, watching as more people marched to their deaths.
" Just put them on, don't show any emotion," Pete said, holding out a pair of the fake ear-pods. Rose took them from his palm. " No signs, nothing, okay?"
" Don't worry, we can do it," Rose assured him as they put the ear-pods in place. Pete glanced at the young blond, who seemed determined.
" We could die in here, why are you doing this?" Pete asked, curiosity building.
" Let's just say I'm doing it for my Mum and Dad," Rose responded, staring ahead, not sending a glance towards Pete. The lights on their fake ear-pods began to flash and Rose let out a tiny sigh. " Right, lets go."
Standing up again, the two made their way out of hiding and into a line of people. They grasped each other's hands tightly before letting go and joining the line, faces blank, danger imminent as they entered the Power Plant.
OOoOO
The tunnels seemed to stretch on forever. The lights still shone eerily on the Cybermen's faces, their eyes blankly staring away into space.
" How'd you get into this then? Rattling along with the Preachers?" The Doctor asked Moore, striking up a conversation. Moore chuckled slightly.
" Oh, I used to be ordinary. Worked at Cybus industries, nine to five. Till one day I find something I'm not supposed to," She informed, causing the two time travelers to look back at her. " A file on the mainframe. All I did was read it. Then suddenly, I've got men with guns knocking in the middle of the night. Life on the run… then I found the Preachers. They needed a Techie, so I… I just sat down and taught myself everything!"
" How about Mr. Moore? How does he feel about all this?" Selene decided to ask, beating the Doctor to it. Moore looked at her feet a moment.
" Well, he's not called Moore. I got that from a book, 'Mrs. Moore'. It's safer not to use real names. But he thinks I'm dead," She told them and Selene felt a violent tug at her heartstrings as her mind was launched back to her family. Did they think that she was dead? Missing?
Snap out of it, that isn't important right now… she thought to herself, continuing to listen to Moore.
" Him and the kids… How about you?" She suddenly asked. " Got any family or…?" She was looking at Selene.
" They're um… very far away. But I've got the Doctor and Rose and Mickey, they're all I need," She replied with a smile, nudging the Doctor to start speaking before she had to continue.
" Oh, who needs family?" The Doctor asked. " I've got the whole world on my shoulders." Moore gave him a saddened look. " Go on then. What's your real name?"
" Angela Price," Moore said after a pause. " Don't tell a soul."
" Wouldn't dream of it," Selene told her with a kind smile.
" Not a word," The Doctor agreed, smiling as well. As they passed a Cyberman, leaving it behind, it suddenly turned on, slowly turning to face the backs of the trio.
A Cyberman came marching up to a control panel up above in a control room and noted the screen.
" Movement in Deepcold Six," It informed a second Cyberman, who marched over as well. It then said,
" Awaken the army."
The trio walked in silence a bit more, not registering the movement that had occurred behind them. But Moore noticed something off… something horribly off. A Cyberman moving its arm.
" Doctor! Did that one just move?" She asked in fear, pointing to it.
" It's just the torch light… keep going, come on," He encouraged. Selene shot a look at the back of his head and then looked at Moore, the look in her eyes saying she'd seen it move too. But as the approached the next Cyberman, its head turned to look at them. " They're waking up! Run!"
" With pleasure!" Selene responded as they broke out into a sprint, hoping their feet would carry them fast enough to survive. Each Cyberman they passed fell into line behind them, beginning to march behind them. At the end of the passage they found a ladder, which stretched upwards towards a door in the ceiling.
" Get up! Quick!" Moore pleaded as Doctor bounded up, trying to open the small door. The Doctor pulled out his Sonic and began to work on the door. " Open it! Open it!" The door finally unlocked and he shoved it open, climbing through. " Get up! Quick, quick!" He pulled Selene up and then helped out Moore as a Cyberman began to climb up the ladder. Selene quickly shut the door and the Doctor pointed the Sonic at it, locking it effectively.
The three rested, panting in attempt to catch their breath. The Doctor grinned at the two women.
" Oh, good team Mrs. Moore, Selene!"
" But can we all agree to never do that again?" Selene asked, making it a rhetorical question. The Doctor and Moore laughed and she joined in, running a hand through her hair to keep it out of her eyes.
" We should keep moving; we can't be sure that there aren't more Cybermen on their way," The Doctor said. " Let's go."
OOOO
Rose and Pete had made it inside the power plant, managing to keep their faces blank, eyes straight forward, following the line of people.
" Units upgraded now six thousand five hundred. Repeat; six thousand five hundred and rising," Stated a Cyberman's voice over the intercom. Rose could feel her stomach twist at the number. Six thousand five hundred people had been turned into Cybermen… something that couldn't be undone once it had happened. Six thousand five hundred people lost. It made her sick.
As they continued to walk down a narrow passage, a Cyberman stepped forward and held up an arm in front of Rose, causing her to stop.
" You will wait," It stated. It turned around and marched forward and Rose and Pete let their composures slip for a moment.
" You okay?" Pete asked quietly.
" No," She replied, voice beginning to shake, her breathing picking up. A line of people marched past them, cutting across in front.
" Chamber six now open for human upgrading," Came the voice over the intercom again. " All reject stock will be incinerated."
Rose and Pete watched as people turned and mindlessly walked into secluded chambers, and when the doors shut behind them and the lights began to flash, the sound of mechanical whirring loudly echoed out. Then Cybermen would step out, turn in perfect sync and march away. They were in the midst of all the processing chambers.
" Any signs of Jackie?" Pete asked hopefully as Rose stared around in horror. A Cyberman spun around to face them. As said Cyberman marched over, both Rose and Pete snapped their expressions back to being blank, staring directly ahead.
" You are Peter Tyler. Confirm: you are Peter Tyler," The Cyberman demanded as it marched closer. Pete's eyes flicked around a bit before finally answering with;
" Confirmed."
" I recognize you. I went first. My name was Jacquelyn Tyler."
Both Rose and Pete's blood ran ice cold.
" No!" Rose exclaimed.
" What!?" Pete cried in distressed horror. Both suddenly realized their major faux pas. They'd let their emotions leak through in that moment of shock. Now they'd been discovered, and nothing good was going to come from it.
" They are unprogrammed. Restrain," The former Jacquelyn Tyler turned Cyberman stated.
" You're lying! You're not her!" Pete shouted as a Cyberman marched up to grab him by the arms. " You're not my Jackie!" Pete's face was close to the cold metal one of the Cyberman who'd once been his wife.
" No, I am Cyberform. Once I was Jacquelyn Tyler." Rose hadn't been able to control the emotion coursing through her. She didn't care if this was her real mother, but that universe's Jackie had definitely been some form of her mother, and she couldn't believe her eyes. She shook her head, messy blond hair beginning to fall into her face. She was shaking and her breath was stuttered.
" But you can't be! Not her!" Rose almost begged as two cold hands grasped her arms.
" Her brain is inside this body," The Jackie-Cyberman said.
" Jacks, I came to save you!" Pete yelled, straining against his captor.
" This man worked with Cybus Industries to create our species. He will be rewarded by force. Take them to Cyber Control."
Rose's back was hunched protectively as she stared around at the Cybermen. Her heart was racing. Pete felt like he'd been stabbed. His wife was gone. He'd never see her again. He couldn't believe he'd let this happen… if he'd just been able to have gone back inside to get her, maybe this wouldn't have happened… They were forced to walk forward by their Cyberman guards and Rose finally managed to speak.
" They killed her… They just took her and killed her!"
" Maybe there's a chance. I don't know… Maybe we can reverse it!" Pete replied hopefully. Rose's heart dropped even more.
" There's nothing we can do…" Rose muttered.
" But if… if she remembers…" He looked back to see dozens of exactly the same looking Cybermen. " Where is she? Which one was it, which one is her?"
" They all look the same- oh!" Rose said as she stumbled when the Cyberman gripping her arms forced her forward, her numb feet taking shaky steps.
OOOO
Jake and Mickey had been pretty successful with their mission thus far. They made it past the guards and into the zeppelin, and they pushed the doors to the control room open, ready to find what they had to. Mickey dropped and unconscious guard, face dead serious, becoming almost identical to the one that Rickey had always worn.
" Nice one. Nobody's home," Jake commented as the two strode into the room confidently. " Find the transmitter controls!" They made their way towards a wall of buttons and monitors, glancing over them. They all looked the same.
" What do they look like?" Mickey questioned. Jake shook his head and shot him a look.
" Well, I don't know! They might have 'Transmitter Controls' written in big red letters, just look!" Jake ordered as they both ran around the wall towards where a ships steering wheel sat, over looking a window. Turning, Mickey saw something that stopped his heart.
A Cyberman.
" Ah!" He yelled out as Jake caught sight of it, drawing a gun, Selene's early comments not registering.
" Cyberman!"
But nothing happened. Nothing at all. It just stood there. It stood in a little space that was like a closet with no door. Jake stepped forward cautiously, gun trained on the metal man the entire time. He reached in and turned on a light, which hummed to life. Still nothing. Mickey walked forward and stepped up beside it, staring at its empty eyes.
" It's dead," He told Jake. " I don't think it was ever alive." He knocked against the head. Nothing but metal clanking. " It's empty, no brain. It's just a robot suit, it's just for display. Jake stared at it another moment before giving a nod.
" Okay. Transmitter." They moved to keep their search moving.
OOOO
Under the Doctor's insistence, the trio had moved on and kept walking. Selene was once more glad she'd gotten to keep her Converse, seeing as they were all treading on their feet lightly, attempting not to make a sound. She stood behind the Doctor, peering over his shoulder to see where they were headed, heart pounding in not only fear, but excitement as well. That was the funny thing; when she was around him, she knew danger was lurking behind every thing, whether it be a door, a corner, anything, but she always felt safe and excited and… well… for the first time in a while, she usually felt pretty happy.
The Doctor stopped at a corner and looked back at the two women, nodding that it was okay and to keep walking around it. He could tell Selene was enjoying the adventure, no matter the level of danger. She seemed to even just blatantly over look it. He had to admit, that could be a concern at times, but it also meant that she was focused on what had to be done, instead of dwelling on the fact that they could be killed when walking around the next corner.
Loud clanging echoed out and a Cyberman blocked their path.
" You are not upgraded," It stated.
" Yeah? Well, upgrade this!" Moore said, hurling a piece of metal wound with copper wiring. It attached to the Cyberman's chest and suddenly sparked and exploded, electricity arcing across its body, causing the Cyberman a sound that could be the equivalent of a scream before it fell to its knees, then the floor.
Selene and the Doctor stared. The Doctor grinned and Selene just blinked, seeming bright spots everywhere.
" What the hell was that thing!?" The Doctor asked as they stepped towards the immobile Cyberman.
" Electromagnetic bomb. Takes out computers, I figured it might take out a Cybersuit," Moore said in a proud manner, earning a smile from the duo.
" Well, you figured right! Now, let's take a look," The Doctor said as they crouched down. He pulled out the Sonic. " Know your enemy… Logo on the front… Lumic's turned them into a brand." He turned on the Sonic and moved it around the circular piece on the chest of the Cyberman. He opened it and stared at the metal piece in his hand. " Heart of steel. But look," He said, pulling out something white, wet and slimy from inside the Cyberman's chest. He held it up for them all to see.
" Is that flesh?" Moore asked.
" Hm," The Doctor hummed. " Central nervous system. Artificially grown then threaded through the suit so it responds like a living thing."
" It is living," Selene said quietly, staring at the metal suit sadly.
" Oh, but look!" The Doctor stroked a piece of circuiting. " Emotional inhibitor. Stops them feeling anything.
" But why?" Moore questioned.
" It's still got a human brain. Imagine its reaction if it could see itself. Realize itself inside this thing…. They'd go insane…" The last part the Doctor said thoughtfully, staring down at it. Selene shook her head, rubbing the bridge of her nose.
" So they cut out the one thing that makes them human," Moore concluded.
" Because they have to."
" Why… am… I… cold?" The Cyberman suddenly asked.
" Oh, God…" Selene muttered, shifting on her feet. She suddenly remembered this part clear as day. " She's remembering…"
" It's alive. It can feel!" Moore added on, shocked. She looked at the two and back at the still living Cyberman.
" We broke the inhibitor. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," The Doctor told it.
" Why so cold?"
" Can you remember your name?"
" Sally. Sally Phelan," It replied, its voice sounding different. Moore raised her brows.
" You're a woman." She stated.
" Where's Gareth?" Sally asked.
" Who's Gareth?"
" He can't see me. It's unlucky the night before." Selene shut her eyes and shook her head.
" You're getting married… He can't see you before you get married," Selene said sadly, voice thick.
" I'm cold. I'm so cold," Sally said again. Selene, who was kneeling close to the Cybersuit's head, reached out a hand and put it on the side of the helmet, eyes opening. The metal was icy under her hands… she couldn't imagine what it actually felt like to be completely encased in it.
" It's alright. You sleep now, Sally," The Doctor said softly, reaching out the Sonic and placing it inside the open hole in the chest. " Just go to sleep." He pressed a button and the Sonic pulsed, and the blue light inside the chest cavity shut off. Selene removed her hand quickly from the helmet and wiped at a stray tear; she'd always been easily moved to tears, and that moment was no exception.
" Sally Phelan didn't die for nothing," The Doctor muttered, mind making conclusions.
" That's… that's it," Selene said, remembering the idea, finally catching on again. " The Emotional Inhibitor, right?" The Doctor nodded and grabbed her shoulders, looking her in the eyes.
" If we could find the code behind it, the cancellation code, then feed it throughout the system, into every Cyberman's head, they'd realize what they are!" The Doctor said excitedly as he drew conclusions.
" And what happens then?" Moore asked curiously.
" It would kill them. The Cybermen were…" Selene paused to sniff a bit, still getting over her emotional moment. " The Cybermen were designed to be an upgraded human; live forever, feel no pain, feel no emotions. The emotions rushing back would over feed the system and, well… no more Cyberman." The Doctor's brows scrunched together as he released Selene's shoulders as a thought hit him.
" Can we do that?" He mused.
" We've got to. Before they kill everyone else," Moore told him. " There's no choice, Doctor. It's got to be done." She stood as the Doctor and Selene stared at the Cyberman that had once been Sally. But the moment Moore was about to stand straight, a thought hit Selene.
" No, Mrs. Moore, don't!" She yelled out, but realized it was far too late. The Cyberman that had managed to creep up behind Moore had grasped her shoulder, sending electric currents through her body, killing her. The Doctor shot up with Selene.
" No, no! You didn't have to kill her!" The Doctor shouted in fury at the Cyberman when Moore dropped to the floor.
" Sensors detect a binary vascular system. You are an unknown upgrade. You will be taken for analysis. The human shall accompany us an then wait to be upgraded," The Cyberman as more marched up. They waited for the Doctor and Selene to begin to follow. The Doctor gently took Selene's hand and they began to walk, eyes cast down to the floor. They walked in silence before a shaky sigh from Selene broke the air.
" She could have lived… I… I could have told her to not stand, I could have stopped it from happening… I knew it would happen… It's my fault…" She muttered, feeling guilt seep into her mind. The Doctor quickly looked at her and saw the look on her face that she had gotten when they had discovered Reinette had died.
" Selene, it isn't your fault. We both know you couldn't have changed anything. Some points in time are-"
" Fixed. I know."
" But, I can promise you something, Selene, we'll save the rest of the people here to make sure both Mrs. Moore and Sally didn't die in vain. Alright? Not you're fault, I won't have you believing that. I won't let you carry that on your shoulders," He whispered to her, squeezing her hand. She nodded slightly, a look of determination slipping back into her eyes. Her fingers squeezed his hand back and they were forced to keep walking.
The corridors were all tight and forced them all to walk in single file, and the Doctor released Selene's hand when they did so. He unfastened the bowtie around his neck, letting it rest under the collar of his shirt and he shoved his hands into his pockets, gaining composure. Selene kept her arms crossed and tried to shake off the guilt, which was slowly beginning to eat at her mind. She shook her head and attempted to convince herself the Doctor was right. She couldn't have saved her. It could be very well that it was a fixed point. Something that absolutely had to happen.
The two were led into a large room and the Doctor looked at all the Cybermen.
" We've been captured, but don't worry, Rose and Pete are still out there, they'll rescue us," He said to all the metal men as they walked towards a row of monitors… where Rose and Pete sat. " Oh, well, never mind. You okay?" He asked to Rose.
" Yeah… but they got Jackie," Rose said sadly, and Pete squeezed his eyes shut.
" We were too late, Lumic killed her," He muttered unhappily.
" And where is he? The famous Mr. Lumic? Don't we get the chance to meet our lord and master?" The Doctor asked loudly, hands still in his pockets as he looked around.
" He has been upgraded," Informed a Cyberman in a steady electronic voice. A moment of silence passed as its words echoed around the room. The Doctor stared at it.
" So he's just like you?"
" He is superior. The Lumic Unit has been designated Cyber Controller."
A set of large doors with the trademark C on it slid open to reveal a Cyberman behind it, sitting on a chair made of metal components, its eyes glowing bright white. The chair slid forward and the four captives stood and stared at it.
" This is the Age of Steel, and I am its creator," It stated. It was wired into the chair with metal tubes, another bright light on the top of its head. Selene felt her jaw drop. There was certainly no way of escaping…
Suddenly screams echoed in the air. People screaming and shouting. The Doctor grinned.
" That's my friends at work! Good boys!" He cried happily, looking up to the ceiling. " Mr. Lumic, I think that's a vote for free will!" The Doctor winked and clicked his tongue. Selene gave Rose a hug in relief, and the blond happily returned it, shutting her eyes and letting out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding in.
" I have factories waiting on seven continents. If the ear-pods have failed, then the Cybermen will take humanity by force," Lumic replied. " London has fallen. So shall the world." Selene pulled back and noticed something interesting about the 'Lumic Unit's' voice. It had more inflection than all the other Cybermen. She'd never noticed it before, but with it right there before her, it was plain as day. It made it all that more intimidating. " I will bring peace to the world, everlasting peace, and unity and uniformity."
" And imagination- how about that? The one thing that led you here: imagination, and you're killing it, dead!" The Doctor exclaimed, crossing his arms.
" What is your name?"
" I'm the Doctor."
" A redundant title. Doctors need not exist. Cybermen never sicken."
" Good thing he's not that kind of Doctor," Selene said with a tiny smirk, crossing her arms.
" Yeah, but that's it! That's exactly the point!" The Doctor shouted at Lumic, his voice jumping an octave or two, rushing forward to him. He sighed and scrunched up his face, looking up at the ceiling again. " Oh, Lumic, you're a clever man. I'd call you a genius, except I'm in the room… But everything you've invented, you did to fight your sickness. And that's brilliant! That is so human! But once you get rid of sickness and mortality, then what's there to strive for, eh? The Cybermen won't advance! You'll just stop! You'll stay like this forever; a metal Earth with metal men and metal thoughts!" The Doctor began to stride around the room, staring at Cybermen as he did so. " Lacking the one thing that makes this planet so alive! People! Ordinary, stupid, brilliant people!"
" You are proud of your emotions?" Lumic inquired.
" Damn straight!" Selene offered from the back with a grin. Rose smiled as well, the two feeling happy again from the Doctor's mini-speech.
" Oh, yes!" The Doctor agreed.
" Then tell me, Doctor, have you known grief and rage and pain?" Lumic asked him. The Doctor's face fell again.
" Yes, yes I have."
" And they hurt?"
" Oh, yes."
" I can set you free. Would you not want that, a life without pain?"
The Doctor's face fell even further, inching closer to anger.
" You might as well kill me," He responded.
" Then I take that option," Lumic said. The Doctor grunted in frustration, leaning forward.
" It's not yours to take! You're a Cyber Controller! You don't control me or anything will blood in its heart!" The Doctor shouted angrily, brows furrowing.
" I have an army, a species of my own." The Doctor ran a hand over his face in annoyance. Again with this whole rant?
" You just don't get it, do you?" He asked, walking towards the other side of the room. " An army's nothing! 'Cause those ordinary people, they're the key!" He gestured to the walls and the people panicking outside of them. He looked up to a camera he knew had feed to the zeppelin, and hopefully Mickey and Jake. " The most ordinary person could change the world! Some ordinary man or woman… some idiot. All it takes is for him to find, say, the right numbers… say the right codes… say… for example… the code behind the emotional inhibitor, the code right in front of him. 'Cause even an idiot knows his computers these days. Knows how to get past firewalls and passwords, knows how to find something encrypted in the Lumic Family Database under- eh, what was it Pete? Binary what?"
" Binary Nine," Pete supplied helpfully, scratching his cheek.
" An idiot could find that code, the cancellation code, and he'd keep on typing. Keep on fighting." The doctor looked directly into the camera. " Anything to save his friends!"
" Your words are irrelevant," Lumic stated sharply. The Doctor let out a goofy laugh as he bent at the waist, grinning.
" Talk too much, that's my problem! Lucky I got you that cheap tariff, Rose, for all our long chats," The Doctor said then looked at the camera saying, " on your phone."
" You will be deleted." That sounded far more menacing than any other Cyberman saying it. It was gruff and husky and evil.
" Yes, 'delete', 'control', 'hash', all those lovely buttons. Then, of course, my particular favorite," The Doctor held a hand up in the air and flexed his wrist to look like he pushed a button. " Send! And let's not forget how you seduced all those ordinary people in the first place." He tapped a beat on a counter top. Rose's phone beeped. She pulled it out and both she and Selene looked at the numbers that were displayed on the screen: 6879760. " By making every bit of technology compatible with everything else."
" It's for you," Rose said, tossing the phone back to the Doctor, who caught it without looking at it.
" Like this," He said as he shoved the phone into a slot. Suddenly, all the Cybermen began to screech, grabbing their heads. They were all remembering and coming to realize what they actually were. Their emotions were coursing through them at rapid speed. One Cyberman caught sight of itself in a reflective surface on one of the monitors as it made a wailing sound. The Doctor sadly looked at it.
" I'm sorry," He said to it. Most Cybermen eventually fell to their knees then the floor, movement no longer apparent. Some even exploded. Lumic was furious.
" What have you done!?" He demanded in fury.
" I gave them back their souls!" The Doctor snatched up the phone again. " They can see what you've done, Lumic! And it's killing them!" And with that the Doctor, Rose, Selene and Pete ran towards the door, leaving Lumic saying,
" Delete. Delete. Delete."
Everything was exploding. Everything. Pipes, monitors, Cybermen, and even flooring. The Doctor sped around corners dodging fire and debris, hoping everyone was keeping up and that no one had fallen behind. The air was becoming heated from all the fire and they just barely dodged a falling piece of grating as they reached the emergency exit. The Doctor threw open the door only to see a room full of screeching Cybermen. He slammed the door shut again. He looked around. They were surrounded by fire and explosions. And there was one more thing observable.
" There's no way out!" He called out over the noise.
" There has to be!" Rose exclaimed in a panic, looking around. None of them wanted to believe there was no way out. They all wanted to escape, to live. They needed to find a way out. Rose's phone beeped again and she quickly answered it. It was Mickey.
" Rose! Rose, can you hear me? Head for the roof!" He ordered in a panicked voice. Rose turned to the other three, who watched in curiosity.
" It's Mickey! He says head for the roof!" She told them. They all sped off towards a metal stair case and froze as fire burst through the steps but then Rose led the way up, followed by Selene, then the Doctor and then Pete.
Metal was heating up at an alarming rate and Selene could feel it through the rubber soles of her shoes. She was fairly sure her hand got burned on a bit of the railing, but she ignored it as they had to climb a ladder on the side of the building. They rushed up and Rose clambered over the side first, moving the phone back up to her ear as they all stared up at the zeppelin floating in the air.
" Mickey, where'd you learn to fly that thing!?" Rose exclaimed.
" PlayStation. Just hold on, Rose, I'm coming to get you," Mickey replied. They all took off at a sprint again as the roof began to blow up in different spots. Glass began to shatter and the debris was thrown into the sky only to fall back to the roof. As they passed under the zeppelin, a rope ladder dropped down and Rose grabbed one end as the Doctor pushed Selene to take the other side.
" Get up!" The Doctor insisted and Selene let Rose begin to climb first before beginning to follow. The zeppelin began to move upwards and the wind whipped through all of their hair as they continued to climb. Rose grinned and looked down at Selene and the Doctor.
" We did it!" She shouted to them happily.
" Woo!" Selene called out into the sky, grinning as well. They all yelled out as something jerked on the ladder, causing them to loose their footing and look down. Lumic was grasping onto the bottom step, attempting to heave himself upwards. He was beginning to climb, getting too close to Pete to be comfortable.
" Pete! Take this!" The Doctor urged, holding out the Sonic, an arm looped through the steps of the ladder. Pete reached up and took it. " Use it! Hold the button down! Press it against the rope! Just do it!"
" Jackie Tyler, this is for her!" Pete shouted as he managed to get the Sonic to work, pressing it against the rope. Lumic continued to get closer and everyone held their breath. He was about to grab Pete's foot when suddenly…
The rope finally got cut through.
Lumic fell away along with the bottom of the ladder, screaming as he was swallowed up by the flames of the factory explosion.
Pete let out a triumphant laugh, and they all paused before continuing their ascent into the zeppelin.
When Selene hauled herself on to the floor of the zeppelin interior, she rolled to the side, laying on the floor, catching her breath. She groaned and rubbed her face, sitting up.
" Feeling alright?" The Doctor asked with a grin, holding out a hand to help her up. She took it and he pulled her to her feet effortlessly.
" Well, we did just escape an exploding factory and an insane robot man and are all seemingly unscathed, so… I'd say yes!" She told him before yanking him into a tight hug. He returned the embrace and grinned, spinning her around once. Both eventually let go and everyone continued to exchange embraces. Mickey eventually gave the steering to Jake and ran down to find his friends.
" Thank God you're all alright!" He told them, earning a group hug from Rose and Selene.
" Thank God you play PlayStation!" Selene told him, pulling away. " Otherwise, we'd all be burnt to a crisp right now!"
" You saved us! Thank you!" Rose said, pulling him in for another hug. Well, all the insane craziness was over… for now.
OOOO
Selene followed the Doctor in to the TARDIS when they arrived back to the shore of the Thames. He strode over to the console and placed the glowing power cell that had survived the entire adventure somehow, on the console. The two waited for a moment before suddenly, the lights came back on. The console powered up. Everything was working. The Doctor grinned brightly, teeth showing as he stared up at his beloved time machine.
" Oh, awesome, it's finally working!" Selene exclaimed, falling back into the pilot's seat, scrubbing a hand through her tangled hair. The Doctor let out a little giggle as he checked a few things, running his hands through his hair, causing it to stand up a bit.
" We've only got about… five or so minutes of power though. We need to get going real soon or we'll be stuck here for much longer," The Doctor told her, making his way to the door. With a breath, Selene threw herself back onto her feet and ran towards the door, stepping out beside the Doctor. " Rose?"
By the looks on both Rose's and Pete's faces, Selene knew Rose had just tried to convince him that she was his daughter in a parallel world, and that he was completely dodging the subject.
" I've only got five minutes of power. We got to go," The Doctor said as he jogged over, Selene coming after him at a steady walk.
" The Doctor could show ya," Rose tried, eyes teary.
" Thank you… for everything," Pete said.
" Dad."
The Doctor's eyes widened a bit as he realized what must have been happening when he'd been restoring the TARDIS' power.
" Don't… Just… Just don't." And with that, Pete turned and jogged off, sending back a glance or two before resolving not to again. The Doctor rubbed the back of his head and Selene made her way to Rose's side, wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulders.
" Here it is!" Mickey said happily, walking over with Jake. He held the Doctor's suit folded up and held it out to the man it belonged to. " I found it! Not a crease."
" My suit! Good man!" He took it and grinned but then looked up at Jake. " Now, then, Jake, we've got to run. But one more thing…" He trailed off and looked at Selene to stood up a bit straighter.
" Mrs. Moore. She told us her real name. It's Angela Price," Selene said. Jake turned and looked at her. " She has kids. And a husband. Find them and please tell them that she died to save the world. Please." Jake sent her a genuine grin.
" Yeah, of course I will," He assured her, earning a smile back from her.
" Off we go then!" The Doctor said.
" Uh, thing is, I'm staying," Mickey suddenly admitted, causing three pairs of eyes to snap to him and go wide.
" You're doing what?" The Doctor asked, unsure if he'd heard him wrong. Rose's eyes began to water even more.
" You can't," She whispered brokenly.
" Mickey, please," Selene begged, her own eyes beginning to sting.
" It sort of balances things out," He said, voice breaking. " 'Cause this world lost its Rickey, but there's me. And there's work to be done with all those Cybermen still out there." Rose began to cry, her voice thick.
" But you can't stay," She told him sadly.
" Rose, my Gran's here. She's still alive, my ol' Gran, remember her?"
" Yeah."
" She needs me."
" What about me? What if I need you?" Rose asked. Mickey looked down and looked over at the Doctor.
" Yeah, but, Rose, you don't." His eyes flicked to Selene as well. " It's just you and him now, isn't it?" He looked over at Selene. " And, Selene, you've got him as well. And you've got Rose. You don't really need me, do you?" Turning his attention back to the blond he continued to talk, trying not to notice the fact tears were running in rivers down Selene's cheeks. " We had something a long time ago, but… not anymore."
" Well, we'll come back," Rose said. " We can travel anywhere, come and see you, yeah?"
" We can't." The Doctor looked at the three sadly. " I told you, travel between parallel worlds is impossible. We only got here by accident; Selene only got here by accident. We- we fell through a crack in time. When we leave, I've got to close it. We can't ever return." Everything fell silent as reality fully sank in. Mickey sucked in a breath and straightened up.
" Doctor," Mickey said, extending a hand. The Doctor shook it.
" Take Rose's phone, it's got the code. Get it out there, stop those factories. And good luck," The Doctor said, a smile beginning to spread on his face. " Mickey the idiot." He playfully tapped his cheek.
" Watch it," Mickey replied, smirking a bit. The Doctor returned to the TARDIS, leaving Selene and Rose with the other two. " Thanks," He said to Rose. " We've had a laugh, though, haven't we? Seen it all, been there and back? Who would have thought me and you off the old estate, flying through the stars."
" All those years just sitting there, imagining what we'd do one day…" Rose's voice cracked harshly as she spoke again. " We never saw this, did we?" They hugged tightly and Mickey sighed.
" Go on, don't miss your flight." Rose eventually let go and sniffed, keeping her face turned away as she quickly walked back to the TARDIS. Selene swiftly flung her arms around Mickey and he squeezed her tightly back as she softly cried into his shoulder.
" I don't care that we've barely known each other; you are one of the best friends I have ever and will ever have, Mickey. Remember that alright? If you don't I'll figure out a way to fly through space and kick your ass," She mumbled into his neck, earning a laugh from him. She pulled away, tears wetting her cheeks and she gave a sad smile, following Rose back into the TARDIS, the door creaking and shutting behind her.
" Jake, you want to watch this," Mickey told his new companion, nodding to the blue phone box. They both watched as the light on top flashed and the engines whirred, the TARDIS slowly disappearing before their eyes. Jake stared in wonder and confusion.
" What… the hell?!" He exclaimed. Mickey nodded and then replied as the TARDIS completely disappeared,
" That's the Doctor, in the TARDIS, with Rose Tyler and Selene Thomas."
OOOO
After everyone had changed, they all stayed silent as the Doctor obliged Rose's quiet request to visit home. Selene sat on the floor, back pressed against the railing, her sweatshirt cuffs pulled over her hands, chin resting on her forearms. She wasn't sure how life would be without Mickey around now. It would be hard to actually get used to; they would complain together about how the Doctor and Rose went on conversations about things they had no idea had happened. They'd complain about running or mindless other things. But as the TARDIS landed and she stood, she knew she'd never forget him, no matter what happened.
Rose stepped out of the TARDIS to find her mother standing there, grinning.
" You're alive," Rose muttered. " Oh, Mum, you're alive!" She ran forward and snatched up Jackie in a hug.
" Well, I was the last time I looked!" Jackie replied with a laugh. The Doctor and Selene stepped out as well and shut the creaky door, the looks on their faces setting off an alarm in Jackie's head. " What is it, what's happened, Sweetheart? What's wrong, where did you go?"
" Far away," The Doctor replied. " That was… far away."
" Where's Mickey?"
" He's gone home."
Rose held her mother tighter, eyes unable to produce anymore tears, seeing as she'd been crying for so long. Selene rubbed the bridge of her nose and let out a shaky sigh, barely registering when the Doctor draped a long arm over her shoulder. She eventually leaned into his side, staring at the carpet, arms crossed over her chest. At least she knew the Doctor would always be there for them, no matter what fresh hell the universe decided to serve up.
Afterword: Ahhhh, such an emotional ending! Also… I AM SO SORRY for the late update! School decided to be extremely rude and serve up so much work I could only write on scraps of paper during class, which was really annoying. I finally got this up and I hope to update all other stories and start the next chapter for this tomorrow. Anyway, hope you liked the chapter!
REVIEW REPLIES!
grapejuice101: Ahaha, I hope you enjoyed this! And yes, Rickey did indeed flirt with dear Selene! Ohhhhhh, Rickey… But now Mickey is gone! AHH! DX Thanks again for the help on this chapter and the review!
TheGirlWhoImagined: Rickey just had a little crush on Selene XD And Mickey was obviously freaked out by it! Anyway, thanks again and hope you enjoyed the chapter!
loulouflowerpower: Hope you enjoyed the update! Took me a while to get out, but I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks again!
fanfreak4ever: Yeah, it's always difficult trying to get Selene in there for good bits with Rose still here, but I'm pushing through! I'm glad you liked the chapter! Hope you enjoyed this one! Thanks again!
Gamerlady123: HA HA HA! That was a cliffhanger! Now you must wait for the next on, which is one of my favorite episodes (Idiot's Lantern; it was the first Doctor Who episode I actually ever saw) Hope you enjoyed the chaper and thanks again!
EmOvAmPcHiLd: Hope you enjoyed the new chapter and thanks so much for the review!
TheMagentaColor: Aha, I was wondering how many people were gonna just sit and stare at the 'to be continued' at the end of the chapter XD I'm glad you've been enjoying the story! (Also, by the way, LOVE your profile picture! I love Loki XD) Thanks again for the review!
notwritten: Hope you enjoyed the chapter and thanks so much for the review!
E-man-dy-S: Yes, Rickey does have some wandering eyes… XD Hope you liked the chapter! Thanks again!
dirtyconfessions: Thank you so much! I'm glad you think Selene's fitting in pretty well! It definitely is hard with Rose still there, but I try my hardest to keep Selene in there! Thanks again so much for the review and hope you liked the chapter!
And thank you to those who have read or added this to their story favorites or alerts. It means the entire universe plus a TARDIS and the Doctor and all the companions to me! (And that's a lot!)
Okay, guys, that's it for now! Hope you'll stick around to see what interesting things I have planned! =D I have a lot, a list actually… XD Anyway, thanks again you guys! Review and let me know how I'm doing!
~Mary