A/N: Oh gosh guys, I'm sorry that I made you freak out about the cliff-hanger!
If you think that was bad, you're not going to be able to read the chapters coming up ;O Trust me, they're even worse!
Anyhow, enough about that. Can't spoil what's going to happen. SO. Have another chapter :D
(On a side note, has anyone been affected by the London Riots? My little sisters freaked out, and I assured them that it wouldn't happen in our area, because we're on the outskirts of London. But nope, our area got targeted too.)
Screaming. Blood. Sobbing. Death.
Opening her eyes, Amy awoke to the chaos surrounding her. Motionless bodies were lying beside her, and she sat up slowly, trying to take in the scene around her through the thick smoke that engulfed the room.
"Doctor?" She whispered hoarsely, struggling to her feet. "Doctor?"
"Help me!" She heard someone cry a couple of metres away, and she turned around to see a small girl lying on the floor, her legs stuck under a wooden beam. "I can't move!"
"It's okay, it's going to be okay." Amy assured her, falling to her knees beside her. "I'll help you."
She tried to move the beam, but it was too heavy. The little girl began to cry, and Amy's heart broke. "Help me!" She cried to the aliens running past her, fleeing for safety. "Help me!"
Nobody stopped, and the little girl screamed as another wooden beam fell from the ceiling, narrowly missing Amy.
"Amy! Amy!"
The voice calling her name was not someone she wanted to see. Antonium emerged from the smoke, and sank down onto his knees beside her. "Are you hurt Amy?"
"No, I'm fine." She said abruptly, turning back to the young girl. "Move this beam!"
Antonium lifted it with ease, and Amy scooped the girl into her arms, mindful of her legs. The girl clung to her, and Amy rose to her feet.
"We have to get out of here!" Antonium cried over the screams of the guests.
"Not without the Doctor!" Amy yelled back, rubbing the girl's back soothingly. "Where is he?"
Antonium gazed around the hall, and shook his head. "I don't know, but it's too dangerous to look for him! We need to go!"
"You go!" Amy told him, passing him the young girl, who he lifted into his arms. "I'm going to find him."
Just as she was about to turn away, Antonium reached out and grabbed her arm. "Amy, staying in here is suicide!" He hissed, his grip tightening.
"I'm not leaving my husband!" She cried, yanking her arm out of his grip. "Take the girl to safety, now!"
Antonium nodded reluctantly, knowing the injured girl had to be his first priority. "Fine. When I have taken her outside, I will return and help you look for him."
"As if I'm going to let you help!" Amy yelled, furious. "You're trying to kill him!"
"Amy, you shouldn't be distressed, so I will do anything to ease you of that. I'll be back."
Without giving Amy a chance to reply, Antonium spun around and ran towards the hall doors, cradling the girl tightly to his chest.
"Doctor!" Amy cried, blindly making her way through the smoke. "Doctor!"
She felt someone bump into her, and she grabbed onto them. "Help me, I'm looking for a man wearing—"
"Get out of my way!" The alien barked, shoving Amy away.
Amy stumbled back from the force, and her back hit the wall. She covered her face with her hands, and took a deep breath to compose herself.
Suddenly, she felt a small tug in her mind. Concentrating on it, Amy moved her fingers to her temples, and felt the Doctor's fear and panic for her filtering through their link.
He was okay.
"Doctor?" She cried, lowering her hands and surging forward. "Doctor, I'm here!"
She felt his relief then, and knew that he was close enough to hear her.
"Amy!" She heard him yell, and she began to run in the direction of his voice. "Amy!"
And then she saw the back of his tweed jacket. She could have cried in relief, but instead, she screamed his name, and the Doctor spun around, his face lighting up when he saw her running towards him.
"Come here you!" She murmured, wrapping her arms tightly around him and fisting her hands in his jacket.
She felt the Doctor laugh, and he hugged her back with just as much force.
"Amy! Doctor!"
At the sound of Antonium's voice, the Doctor stiffened and withdrew from Amy to push her gently behind him.
They saw him then, and he beckoned them forward with his hand. "We need to go, before the whole room collapses."
The Doctor regarded him warily, but nodded, knowing the danger they were all in. He took Amy's hand, and the two of them followed Antonium out of the hall, manoeuvring around rubble, bodies and fire as they ran.
Minutes later, they joined the remaining party guests outside, and gazed at the burning lower floor of the castle.
"What happened in there?" Amy whispered, as the Doctor draped his jacket tenderly over her shoulders to keep her warm.
"Someone wired a bomb into the ceiling." Her husband replied gravely, and Amy shivered.
"Who would do that?" She murmured, shaking her head. "There are people dying in there!"
"I think that was the point of the bomb, to kill the Purian royalty who held the party." Antonium remarked sadly. "Judging from the force of the blast, it was an Atoxic Bomb, which can—"
Suddenly, he froze, and his eyes widened in horror.
"What?" Amy demanded, seeing that the Doctor's expression mirrored his. "What's wrong?"
"An Atoxic bomb is made up of two bombs, and the second is designed to go off exactly thirty minutes after the first one." Antonium explained, frowning in concern.
"Which means…" Amy trailed off, and the three of them gazed anxiously at the castle.
"We need to stop the bomb. The second is far more explosive than the first, and it could tear the planet apart." The Doctor said quietly. "We have about eleven minutes until that happens."
"Eleven?" Amy repeated, worried. "That's not that long."
"I've had worse time limits." The Doctor shrugged, attempting to lighten the situation. "Eleven's a wonderful number. You can do a lot in eleven minutes."
"Can you stop a bomb in eleven minutes?" Amy asked him, and before the Doctor could reply, Antonium spoke.
"No, he can't. But I can, if I help him." He said, and the Doctor's eyes narrowed.
"Oh, really? And what makes you think that I trust you?" He demanded, glaring at him.
"I know that you don't. But listen, you're intelligent enough to know that my species are trained as military soldiers, and that I am skilled enough to unwire an Atoxic bomb in seconds." Antonium replied, staring him down.
The Doctor was silent for a moment, debating, before nodding. "Fine. You can help me."
"Alright then, let's go and save the planet!" Amy exclaimed, stepping forward, but both men blocked her path.
"Don't be ridiculous!" The Doctor hissed, shaking his head. "It's too dangerous for you to come with us!"
Antonium nodded in agreement, and Amy glared at both of them. "I'm coming with you." She said defiantly, hands on her hips.
"No, you're going back to the TARDIS and staying put until I return!" The Doctor told her firmly.
"No!" Amy snapped, furious that the Doctor was being too over-protective again. She was his equal, and she felt that he wasn't treating her like one.
"We don't discuss this!" The Doctor roared; his anger ignited by hers. "I tell you to do something Amelia and you do it!"
Amy continued to glare at him, and the Doctor glared back. Moments later, her face flooded with hurt, and she whirled around and stormed away.
The Doctor watched her walk away sadly, not proud of talking to her the way that he had. But he needed her to get to safety, and the only way to break her stubbornness was to use anger as retaliation.
"Come on Doctor, we need to go." Antonium said, shaking the Doctor from his reverie.
The Doctor nodded, and after glancing at Amy's retreating back, he followed Antonium through the castle gates.
~I~
Once they were inside the burning castle, and standing on the grand staircase outside of the hall, the Doctor licked his finger and held it up in the air.
"Right, second floor, twenty-third room from the blue figix vase." He announced, lowering his hand. "That's where we'll find the bomb."
"Remarkable." Antonium commented in awe as he followed the Doctor up the staircase.
"Thanks, I think." The Doctor muttered, still unsure about Antonium. "Listen, can I ask you a question?"
Antonium nodded cautiously, and he caught up with the Doctor in the hallway, so they could walk side-by-side.
"Why did you keep protecting Amy, before the bomb went off?" The Doctor asked him. "Your brother could have killed her instantly, but you wouldn't let him harm her."
Antonium smiled slightly. "You really don't know, do you?"
"No." The Doctor admitted, as much as he hated to admit that he didn't actually know something. "Although I wouldn't be surprised if it's because you fancy her. Everybody does."
"Doctor, Amy is a beautiful being." Antonium said, and the Doctor nodded in agreement. "But no, I do not 'fancy her', as you put it. She's yours, and I would never interfere with the unconditional love between you two."
The Doctor gazed at him for a moment, before smiling. "You know Antonium, I think I'd like you, if you hadn't tried to kill me earlier."
Antonium didn't return his smile, and the Doctor raised his eyebrows. "Ah yes, I forgot. Your kind is against friendship with other species. Sorry I tried."
The Doctor saw the blue figix vase then, and rushed forward to start counting the doors. "We're nearly there!" He called back to Antonium as he ran down the hallway.
"Good!" Antonium called back, before reaching into his jacket pocket to touch the gun that rested inside. "But your time's almost up, Doctor." He whispered, removing his hand and following the Doctor.
~I~
Once both men were inside the room, they began to search for the bomb, and the Doctor found it strapped under the bed in the middle. They lifted the bed with ease, and turned it over to examine the bomb.
"Let's get to work!" The Doctor exclaimed, slapping Antonium on the back.
Antonium suppressed a shudder at the contact as he joined the Doctor on the floor, and the two of them began to unwire the bomb, snapping cables and tossing wires aside.
The job only took seconds, due to both of their quick minds, and the countdown on the bomb faded. Antonium rose to his feet, but the Doctor remained on the floor to examine their handiwork. "We did it Antonium!" He said cheerfully. "Now all this bomb can be used for is a keepsake on someone's mantelpiece, so I guess it's not a complete waste."
Antonium was silent, and the Doctor frowned. He rose to his feet and turned to face him, when he saw him pointing a gun at him.
"Not this again." The Doctor sighed, holding his hands in the air. "Look Antonium, we just saved this planet. Doesn't that count for something?"
"Not to me." Antonium said flatly. "Why did you kill my father?"
"He asked me to." The Doctor replied quietly. "Let me explain."
Antonium was silent, so the Doctor continued. "Look, your father was in trouble from the Gigans that controlled your planet at the time. He had some valuable information on them, which he sold to the Hikis. He was the reason for the war between your planet and theirs. And the Gigans wanted him dead, and he would die a traitor's death in front of your whole planet."
The Doctor paused, and Antonium nodded, wanting him to carry on. "Your father asked me to kill him, knowing that there was no way to save him. I offered to take him away to another part of the Universe, but he refused to leave you and your family. He wanted to die heroically, to stop the Gigans from coming to your home and killing all of you."
"So you came to my home instead." Antonium whispered, a tear sliding down his cheek, and the Doctor bowed his head.
"I was a different person then, and I didn't have the compassion that I do now." The Doctor told him softly, raising his head to look at him again. "If your father had asked me to kill him now, I would never, ever take his life. Do you understand?"
"I understand Doctor."
The Doctor lowered his hands, and smiled in relief. "Good."
"I understand that you're a liar!" Antonium roared, and the Doctor raised his hands again. "My father would never start a war and betray our planet: he'd rather die first!"
"He did." The Doctor reminded him, though regretted it when Antonium moved his finger over the trigger of the gun. "Your father committed a crime, and he wanted to be punished for it. I complied, but I am not proud of what I did."
"Stop lying to me!" Antonium raged, his cerulean eyes burning with hatred.
~I~
After her row with the Doctor, Amy had returned to the TARDIS to sit in the console room and sulk until her husband returned. He'd have to do hell of a lot to make up for shouting at her like that.
The TARDIS made a groaning sound then, and Amy frowned. "Are you okay?" She asked her, standing up to rest her hand on the console.
The TARDIS engines grunted again, and Amy knew something was wrong. "The Doctor." She realised, worried. She raised her fingers to her temples, and felt the Doctor's fear again.
Latching onto his emotion, she delved further into his mind, until she caught a fleeting image of a gun pointed at his chest.
"Oh my God." She breathed, lowering her hands and turning her attention to the console. "We need to save him!"
The TARDIS hummed in agreement, and Amy began to enter the destination code to the room where the Doctor was, that his ship had just given to her through their minds.
Suddenly, it was as if she knew everything about the TARDIS. She knew what every button and lever did, and she controlled the console with ease, guiding the TARDIS directly to the Doctor. She used the blue stabilisers to make the ship land silently, and used the cloaking device to make it invisible.
And then, once she'd landed, she headed over to the chest in the corner and took out a shovel.
~I~
Wind that had come from nowhere was swirling around them, but Antonium paid it no attention. The Doctor knew exactly what the wind was though, and he tried to keep Antonium talking until he could edge towards his unseen TARDIS and sneak in.
"Look Antonium, I'm sorry. There's nothing more I can say, or do." The Doctor said gently, lowering his hands.
"You can. You can die for what you did!" Antonium hissed.
Before he could squeeze the trigger, Amy suddenly appeared out of thin air, and she whacked him over the head with a shovel, knocking him unconscious.
The Doctor watched Antonium fall to the floor in amazement, and then glanced up at his wife, stunned.
Amy dropped her shovel, and met the Doctor's shocked gaze. "Well, I bet you're glad that I didn't stay put after all!" She announced, smirking, knowing that she'd just saved his life.
"Amelia, what you just did was incredibly reckless and stupid." The Doctor whispered, still stunned that she'd managed to fly his TARDIS and knock out a powerful alien using a garden utensil.
"I just saved your life!" She hissed, angry now.
"But it was also absolutely magnificent." He added, beaming. "Well done you!"
Amy would normally be chuffed with his praise, but not this time. She was still furious with him after the way that he'd yelled at her. "If you ever yell at me like that again, I will stick your screwdriver where the sun doesn't shine!" She snapped, ignoring his admiration.
"Ooh!" The Doctor exclaimed, grinning, before he recognised the anger behind her words. "Ah, wait. That doesn't sound very pleasant."
"It won't be." She stated furiously. "Why did you shout at me like that?"
"Because it was the only way to get you to listen to me and stay out of danger." The Doctor admitted.
"Stop being so bloody noble." Amy sighed, her anger fading now. "I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself."
"I know you can, and I'm sorry." The Doctor said smoothly, attempting to reconcile with her, even if he didn't fully believe what she was saying. After all, she couldn't protect herself from the cracks in time.
"Good. Now let's get out of here. This party really sucked." Amy complained, interrupting the Doctor's thoughts.
Laughing, the Doctor followed her into the invisible TARDIS.
~I~
After the TARDIS had flown away, Antonium came around, and he sat up in confusion. He rubbed his head, feeling a lump, and then saw a shovel next to him.
He could sense Amy's scent on it, and shook his head in disbelief. "Wow." He murmured, rising to his feet.
Just as he was about to leave the room, he heard something teleport in behind him, and he froze when he heard the sound of the Daleks.
"Are you friends of the Doctor?" The Daleks demanded, and Antonium turned around to face them.
"No. Never." He said quickly, trying to conceal his fear.
"Then we need you to help us." The white Dalek told him. "He is a threat, and he must be stopped."
Antonium was interested immediately, having missed out on his chance to harm the Doctor. "How are you going to stop him?" He asked them eagerly.
"We have a trap for him, using his companion as bait." The Dalek explained, and Antonium was instantly horrified.
"Amy? No, you can't hurt her!"
"She will be exterminated!" The Daleks announced together.
Antonium's horror intensified. "No, no! You can't! She's pregnant!"
"She must die!"
"Kill the Doctor, but not her!" Antonium pleaded. His species were designed to preserve and nurture pregnant females, and he couldn't allow Amy to be hurt.
"Help us, or be exterminated!" The white Dalek thundered, and all of the Daleks pointed their weapons at them.
Antonium was helpless, stuck in a life or death situation. He had no choice now. If his brother could defy the laws of their species, then so could he.
"Fine. I'll help you kill Amy and the Doctor." He whispered, defeated.
You have to remember Antonium. He will be a very important character in the future, especially to Amy. Okay?
Leave a review; you're given a preview. Aw yeahhh.
I think you'll like the next chapter. It's the return of Amy and the Doctor's friends. Woo!
Hayley x
p.s Niro, I hope you're satisfied that I finally gave you an answer about the whole pregnancy thing :D It just might be a while before Amy and the Doctor realise, as knowing those two, they won't have a clue!
And Ett18, thank you so much for your kind review! :)