A/N: See, a quick (ish) update! Aren't I good to you all? Haha!
This chapter was rather hard to write, and hard to read over, so please forgive any bad wording. Hopefully next chapter will be better as the story is drawing to it's end...only two chapters left folks!
Jack didn't know what to expect when he finally surfaced back to life, but it certainly wasn't the mass of destruction around him.
The Doctor's Roman friends were lying unconscious beside him, but he didn't care about them as much as he cared for the broken bodies of River and Amy, both of them on the other side of the chamber.
"Shit!" He hissed, forcing his aching body to stand so that he could walk over to them. "Amy? River? Wake up!"
Suddenly, he heard a quiet cough, and River jolted upright, wincing.
"You're okay!" Jack realised in relief, but his elated grin quickly faded when he saw the gun wound on her chest. "Christ River, what the hell happened while I was out?"
"The Doctor was stabbed by the two Autons over there, and then they shot all three of us." River told him bluntly, before digging her fingers into her wound.
Jack couldn't even ask her to expand her story, too horrified by the sight of her investigating her bloody injury. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Healing." River replied simply, withdrawing her hand away from her chest, her bloody fingers clutching a silver bullet. "It will take more than a bullet to kill me, but it was uncomfortable having it in my chest. Where's Amy?"
"Behind you." Jack said sadly, offering her his hand so that she could stand. "She doesn't look so good, but she'll be okay, right? She can't die, after all."
"I wouldn't be so sure." River whispered, staring over at horror at Amy's immobile, frail body. "Think of what she's been through, what her body's been through."
Jack nodded slightly, and then both of them set off towards Amy, sinking to the ground once they'd reached her. Immediately, River began to search for a pulse, while Jack began to examine her injuries.
"Three bullets, two in her left shoulder, one in her heart." Jack stated, tearing off material from his shirt to patch up her wounds. "Still bleeding though, which is a good sign. Her heart must still be beating."
"But not for long...her pulse is slowing." River whispered, releasing Amy's wrist to press her fingers to the pulse point in her neck. "The Doctor told me something, years ago, about the time energy in Amy's blood. When she's pregnant, she's more vulnerable than ever, having to share her immunity with their baby, which weakens her body in the process. And because of the pregnancy acceleration, all of her time energy has been used up to grow her daughter."
"So...you're saying..." But Jack had to trail off, to hold in his emotion. "Fuck, River. What do we do? We need to get her to a Doctor..." And then suddenly, he realised a very important person was missing from the chamber, and his face whitened. "River, where the fuck is the Doctor? You said he was stabbed...tell me he isn't..."
Wordlessly, River nodded mournfully towards the Pandorica. "He's trapped inside there, but we can't release him. The stab wound will kill him if he leaves it, and the Pandorica is frozen in time, effectively freezing the Doctor's body and keeping him alive."
"But we have to River!" Jack snapped. "Amy's dying! And he can help us! Are you willing to let the Doctor and Amy lose their first child? Are you?"
"I can save Amy!" River cried, withdrawing a small cube from her pocket. "My device is disabling the deadlock on the chamber so we can use our vortex manipulators to get out of here! Then we can take Amy straight to the hospital!"
"And then what?" Jack demanded, his grief quickly evolving into anger. "What will happen at the hospital? What, can the Doctors there magically create time energy to put inside Amy to keep both her and her daughter alive? Bullshit! No one knows, or even understands how time energy works. Except the Doctor. And without it, Amy and her baby are dead! We need him River!"
"And you're prepared to let him die, or regenerate?" River hissed. "You know Amy will hate us - and him - if we let him do either of those!"
"I'm sure Amy will be happier having a husband with a different face than her and her baby dying, and leaving the Doctor alone for eternity!" Jack bellowed, and when River's face fell, he knew he'd won the argument. "I'm releasing him. It's what he'd want us to do."
River knew that he was right, so she reached into Amy's gown pocket to retrieve her sonic screwdriver, having felt it when she was embracing her earlier. "Here." She whispered, passing it to him. "You do it. I'll wait with Amy."
Gripping the sonic screwdriver tightly in his hand, Jack rose to his feet shakily, his grief and sadness threatening to cripple him. But knowing that he could help the Doctor save Amy - and themselves - gave him the courage to raise the sonic and unlock the Pandorica.
However, that new-found courage was quickly shattered when he saw the state that the Doctor was in. The wound on his side was his worst injury, but he had a black eye, bruising along his jaw, and his arms were covered in deep gashes.
"Doctor?" Jack whispered, almost too scared to wake him, if his unconscious state was keeping him from feeling any pain. But glancing back over at Amy's crumpled body, he pushed that fear aside, and shook the Doctor's shoulders. "Doctor, wake up!" He commanded, and the Doctor's eyes suddenly flew open.
"...Jack?" He whispered, blinking slowly. "What...what-"
"-Doctor." Jack said quietly, needing to cut him off, and he gripped his friend's shoulders tightly. "It's Amy...you need to help her."
The moment the Doctor's eyes fell on Amy's broken form, the agonising pain he was in was nothing compared to his uncontrollable grief.
"Release-" The Doctor's voice broke, but he continued. "-me. Now Jack."
With no hesitation, Jack released him from his restraints, and the Doctor slowly rose to his feet, pressing his hand against the stab wound to stop the flow of blood that would begin when he left the Pandorica. Jack went to place his arm around the Doctor but he shrugged him off, unwilling to accept his weakness just yet.
The moment he stepped foot outside of the Pandorica, the pain intensified, and the Doctor almost collapsed from the excruciating pain from his battle wounds. But Amy kept him strong, for her and for their unborn daughter, and he gravitated towards them.
When he reached her side, he let himself fall to the floor, and he pressed his forehead to Amy's, finally reactivating their psychic bond. "I'll save you Amelia Pond." He vowed softly, leaning back to plant a trembling kiss on her cold lips. "Jack, River, put Amy inside the Pandorica."
He didn't need to look away from Amy to know that his friends were staring at him in horror. "Absolutely not!" River hissed. "You need to return to it, or you'll-"
"-Amy and our daughter will die if they are not placed inside of it!" The Doctor snapped, turning his gaze away from Amy to glare at River.
"So will you!" River reminded him sharply, but her voice cracked, and the Doctor's face softened.
"I can hold on for a while longer. The effect from the Pandorica is still preserving my body. Now please, do as I say." The Doctor whispered, and River's face crumpled, saddened by, yet understanding his sacrifice.
But she stayed strong, and while Jack gently scooped Amy up from the ground and placed her inside the Pandorica, River began to set the controls inside of the prison to accommodate for Amy.
The Doctor could only watch the process, not having the strength to do their job, until he noticed Antonium's lifeless form, only metres away from him. Slowly, he began to crawl towards him to help him, but he already knew that it was too late. He couldn't even hear a heartbeat.
"I'm so sorry Antonium." He said quietly as he reached him, and he took his hand to feel for a pulse. Upon finding none, he closed Antonium's eyelids, finally putting him to rest. "I never got to thank you, but I promise, I'll find a way to repay your favour. Your death has not been in vain."
"Doctor?"
At the sound of River's voice, the Doctor slowly rose to his feet, wincing from the pain, and turned towards her.
"How long do we leave Amy in the Pandorica for?" River asked him, her hand on Amy's forehead. "Her pulse has stopped slowing down, but it'll be a while before-"
"-Two thousand years." The Doctor stated, interrupting her, and Jack looked aghast by his response.
"Absolutely not!" He thundered. "How are we supposed to - how are you supposed to stay alive for two thousand years!"
The Doctor regarded him for a moment, but didn't reply to his question. Instead, he turned his gaze on River. "River, I need you to go to my TARDIS, and fly her here. Quick as you can. Can you do that for me?"
Not even River could argue against the Doctor's wish, the fervour in his eyes the deciding factor. "Of course." She said immediately, already recognising the Doctor's plan. "I'll set the controls for the 26th of June, 2010 so as soon as I fly her here, we can travel straight to that era afterwards."
The Doctor couldn't help but smile slightly, knowing that she understood his plan. "Atta girl." He remarked, and River stepped forward so that he could place his hand on her cheek. "Be careful though, eh? Take Amy's sonic. Watch out for Autons and any other enemies that may be lurking around."
"I'll be fine." River replied determinedly, placing her hand over his. "I promise you that I won't let you down."
"I know you won't." The Doctor said softly, withdrawing his hand and giving her a half-hearted smile. "Now go."
After catching Amy's sonic screwdriver that Jack had tossed towards her, River took out her cube device, and smiled when she saw the readings. "I'll be back sooner than you think." She commented, withdrawing her vortex manipulator. "See you soon!"
And then she disappeared in a flash of light.
"Doctor, I don't understand your plan." Jack told him after she'd gone, making his way towards him. "What's so important about the 26th of June?"
As Jack reached his side, the Doctor eventually accepted defeat, and leant his weight on his friend, now needing his support as the pain of his injuries intensified. "Don't you remember what I showed you, in your mind? That's the day that my enemies began this plan, and it's the safest day I can take Amy to. It'll also take that amount of time to restore the time energy into her blood. And most importantly, on that day, there are no cracks in time."
"But what will happen to Amy in those two thousand years? Will she just remain unconscious in the Pandorica?"
At the Doctor's weary nod, Jack frowned. "But who will look after her? Who will ensure the Pandorica will come to no harm?" He demanded, and the Doctor closed his eyes resignedly.
"I would do it, but I'm going to die or regenerate in a matter of minutes, and I can't afford to do either of those." The Doctor whispered. "I thought maybe the Autons could do it. They love her, despite what they've done."
"Despite what they've done?" Jack echoed angrily. "They nearly killed Amy! How can you even trust them with her?"
But the Doctor couldn't reply, not able to tell Jack of their true identities for fear of harming him.
Interpreting his silence as indecision, Jack turned his gaze on Amy. Seeing her so wounded hurt him, but also gave him strength, and he silently vowed that he'd never let anything else happen to her, or to the Doctor. And with his vow came the realisation that he was the only person that could look after Amy for that period of time. "Doctor, I'll do it." He declared. "I'll guard the Pandorica. I will be able to look after Amy, better than anyone else could."
The Doctor was stunned at Jack's affirmation, but also touched. "Jack...that's a big responsibility...and it's for two thousand years. Do you really think that you could-"
"-Without a doubt." Jack said firmly, and there was no questioning the fierce determination burning in his eyes. The Doctor recognised the feeling immediately, having felt it himself, and witnessed it whenever he sat with the Face of Boe. Jack was slowly growing up to be the finest being in the Universe, and that gave the Doctor great comfort, knowing that Amy would come to no harm under his guard.
"Thank you Jack." The Doctor whispered, knowing that no other words would express his gratitude more than those three.
Jack understood though, and he gave the Doctor a brilliant smile in return.
Suddenly, the familiar sound of the TARDIS engines filtered through the air, and the Doctor couldn't help but smile that River had chosen to leave the brakes on like he did, so that they'd know when she was here.
When the TARDIS landed, River immediately stepped out, looking relieved when she saw the Doctor was still standing on his feet, with the help of Jack. "The TARDIS is set to fly straight to the 26th of June." She told them, nodding towards the time machine. "Would you like me to seal the Pandorica?"
"I'll do it." The Doctor said, reaching carefully into his pocket to take out his sonic screwdriver. "I need to give Amy a psychic message for when she wakes up." He released his hold on Jack, ignoring his friend's pleas to help him walk over to the Pandorica, and began to move towards Amy. "Jack, could you wake Hannah and Rory and help them into the TARDIS?"
"You want the Autons to travel with you?" Jack cried incredulously. "No way in Hell!"
"They're my friends, and they're not Autons anymore. Scan them yourself if you don't believe me." The Doctor replied tiredly, finally reaching the Pandorica, and he leaned against it, watching as Jack took Amy's sonic from River and proceeded to scan Rory and Hannah.
Seeing that the Doctor was right, Jack sighed in resignation. "You're sure?" He asked him one last time, pocketing the sonic.
At the Doctor's weary, but firm "Yes", Jack kneeled beside Rory, and shook him vigorously to wake him up.
Rory suddenly jolted upright, and Jack immediately moved away to wake Hannah next.
"Doctor?" Rory whispered, seeing him propped up against the Pandorica. "Doctor, I'm so sorry! I didn't...I couldn't-"
"Rory, enough." The Doctor said gently, holding up his hand. "I know it wasn't your fault. None of this was your fault. Please don't mention it again. Just get inside the TARDIS."
But Rory began to shake his head adamantly, his anguish too great, and the Doctor knew he wouldn't forgive or forget what he'd done. "Doctor, this was my fault! I stabbed you...and..." Then he trailed off, suddenly seeing Amy inside of the Pandorica. "I...shot Amy...and I can't-"
"-Rory!" The Doctor snapped, interrupting his friend's tirade. "Don't work yourself up! We don't have time for this! Get inside of the TARDIS, and River will explain everything to you. Now go!"
Even Rory, as guilty as he felt, couldn't keep arguing with the Doctor, especially seeing the state he was in, and recognising that if their conversation continued, his health would worsen. So after one last, sorrowful glance in Amy and the Doctor's direction, Rory rose to his feet, and hurried into the TARDIS.
Hannah, who had awoken during their conversation, also gave the Doctor, the same, grief-stricken look, before following her husband inside of the TARDIS, River shutting the doors behind them to give the Doctor and Jack the privacy to talk without them hearing.
"The Pandorica is fixed to this location." The Doctor told Jack, scanning the prison with his sonic screwdriver. "It cannot be moved more than a mile from this point. I'm certain River has already attached the TARDIS to the Pandorica so that we will be able to locate you as quickly as we can in two thousand years time."
"Do you think your enemies will try to take Amy again?" Jack asked him, worriedly looking around their surroundings, although nothing was there.
"No. They got what they accomplished." The Doctor told him jadedly. "I can't live for much longer outside of the Pandorica, and they know that. You should both stay safe. But just in case, Amy's sonic has a force field setting, that you can use to encase yourself and the Pandorica in. No enemies would be able to touch you, or destroy that force field."
"What about you?" Jack whispered, noticing that the Doctor hadn't mentioned how he was going to stay safe, and prevent himself from dying.
"The TARDIS has medicine that will soothe the pain of my injuries, and keep them from killing me." The Doctor replied, smiling wryly. "I can hold on for a bit longer. But not forever. I may have to return to the Pandorica once Amy has healed."
Jack's face grew ashen. "No Doctor, you can't."
"It might be the only way to stay alive. I can't regenerate now, I just can't." The Doctor said despairingly.
Jack knew, just like Rory, that conversing like this and trying to disagree with the Doctor could damage his health further, so he didn't reply. Instead, he whispered, "You should say goodbye to Amy before you start to feel worse."
The Doctor nodded slightly, not mentioning that he was already feeling near-death, the constant blood flow of his stab wound weakening his body, and stepped closer to Amy so that he could rest his hands on her cheeks, his fingers touching her temples.
Closing his eyes, and opening their psychic bond, he began to speak to her, knowing that she wouldn't hear his words for another two thousand years.
Amy, I'm so sorry for everything that's happened. He began. I know you don't understand everything, and I don't either, but I promise you that you will awaken, safe and unharmed, and so will our daughter. I'm sorry that I couldn't stay, but I'm positive that Jack is a better guard than I could ever be.
He had to pause then, knowing just how truthful those last words were. He'd failed to protect both her and their unborn daughter, and he knew that everything that had happened to them was his fault. But he refused to dwell on that now, knowing that more important things were at stake.
I'll be with you as soon as I can, my love. I'm sorry.
He ended the message with tears burning beneath his eyelids, and he kissed her forehead, resting there for a moment, savouring her for one last time before he had to seal her inside the prison that was meant for him.
"Doctor," Jack said quietly, "It's time to go."
"I love you Amy." The Doctor whispered, opening his eyes as he removed his hold on her. He then rested his hands on her abdomen, allowing himself to be momentarily comforted by the movement of their unborn daughter.
"Doctor..." Jack said warningly, and the Doctor closed his eyes again, needing to will himself to move away from the Pandorica. When he found the willpower, he stepped backwards, but found he didn't have the strength to close the doors of the Pandorica.
"Jack...could...you..."
He didn't even need to finish before Jack sealed the Pandorica shut, using Amy's sonic screwdriver.
Knowing that he had to leave now, he began to walk towards the TARDIS, needing to hold his side now as the blood flow grew thicker. Jack made his way over to him to help him complete his journey, and this time, the Doctor didn't ignore his help, needing his support more than ever.
"I'll look after her." Jack told him sincerely, and the Doctor managed to give him a small smile.
"I know you will." He whispered, and then Jack embraced his frail friend, mindful that he didn't brush against any of his injuries.
"Goodbye Doctor." Jack murmured, releasing him and backing away towards the Pandorica, taking up his position. "I'll see you soon."
The Doctor nodded, and then River stepped out of the TARDIS to help him inside. "Come along Doctor." She said, with a slight smile, knowing that he tended to use those words to his friends and family.
Accepting the hand that she offered him, the Doctor cast one last look at the Pandorica, before stepping inside of the TARDIS.
Next chapter will hopefully answer the questions about the 26th of June, the cracks in time etc etc...and it will be a long one, just so I can end the story on the 68th chapter, haha!
Till next time,
Hayley xo