Chapter Thirty-Two: A Good Man Goes Back to War

"Are we sure that we can trust him?"

Snow had been focusing through her telescope upon hearing Grumpy. "Have you not heard the stories of the things he's done across many lands? Many kingdoms? This is the Doctor we're putting our hopes on."

"Which is exactly the reason why I'm asking if we're sure he can be trusted!" Grumpy countered. "This guy left me in the same dungeon where Charming is right now. I'm just saying – what if he decides…"

Already clued in on what Grumpy was going to say before it escaped his mouth, Snow looked away from her telescope and sternly at him. "I've seen the Doctor do enough good deeds these past months to know he'll never be capable of something that evil. He gave me his word…even crossed his heart…"

"Both of them?" Grumpy queried.

"Both of them." Snow confirmed.

Accompany Snow and Grumpy were Widow Lucas ("Granny") and the other six dwarves, each of them brandishing weapons in preparation for battle. "The Doctor knows of those metal men King George replaced most of his soldiers with," Granny informed Grumpy. "From what I've heard, they aren't human…I don't even think they're of this world."

Snow glanced through the telescope again, focusing on the wall surrounding the kingdom they were targeting. "If we're going to get Charming out, we're going to have to get over that wall." She saw a couple of Cybermen cross upon the wall itself. "The metal men are there…on every parapet."

The group suddenly heard the leaves from nearby bushes rustle and aimed at the foliage with caution. After a brief moment, Red stepped out of the bushes, holding her arms up in protest. "Don't shoot. It's only me."

Lowering their weapons, the team sighed in relief while Grumpy noticed something peculiar about Red's face. "Uh, Red? You know you got someone on your chin."

Red rubbed the hint of blood off from the area that Grumpy indicated – a clear result of the scouting mission that Snow had sent her on. "What were you able to find out, Red?" Snow asked once Red cleaned herself up some.

"The Doctor was right. There are many of those metal men around. I was only able to take out as many human soldiers as I could find to give the Doctor time enough to get in." Red updated before focusing solely on Snow and adding, "Your prince is still alive."

Snow was pleased by the news, yet she was still perturbed by the look on Red's face as she gave it. "So why do you look happy?"

"Because I also heard word the Queen is here." Red stated to the displeasure of Snow, Granny, and the dwarves.

"She knew I'd come for him." Snow quickly deduced.

"It's a trap." Granny cautioned.

"Indeed." Snow acknowledged. "It matters not. We can't turn back now…not with the Doctor still inside."

Grumpy groaned. "Does he even have a plan?"

"No," Red disdainfully answered, "but he did say something about a signal."

"What signal?" Grumpy asked.

BOOM!

The sound of an enormous explosion attracted their attention towards the castle just in time to see one of the walls collapse with the Cybermen still on. Both Cybermen and chunks of debris fell into twenty feet into the water below. Watching the explosion as it occurred, Snow and the others knew that it had to be the work of the Doctor. Snow grinned at the result and thought aloud, "It's an excessive signal, but a signal nonetheless." She then gathered her "army" and started leading them hastily to the castle.

Many shopkeepers abandoned their posts, as well as other citizens of King George's kingdom, as soon as the explosion erupted at the nearby wall. Immediately responding to the chaos were a few of King George's soldiers and large quantity of Cybermen (his newest troops). They marched towards the cloud of smoke that billowed into the street; soon a figure emerged from it, covered from head to toe in soot, yet completely unharmed. Although the soldiers were unable to tell who the stranger was (even without the soot masking his face), the Cybermen instantly recognized him as the Doctor.

"Blimey! It's incredible what you can do with gunpowder and a sonic! Am I right?" The Doctor said, clearly unfazed by the swords drawn at him or the Cybermen who were merely staring at him.

"In the name of King George, we are placing you under arrest!" The lead soldier declared.

"You will be deleted!" The lead Cyberman also declared.

The Doctor glimpsed back and forth between the two leaders, whose orders appeared to be opposing one another; he saw the soldier glanced at the Cyberman from the corner of his eye with disconcert. "Well, which is it? Am I arrested or deleted? Obviously, King George failed in appointing a leader in your 'merry band' of misfits, didn't he? You all are more confused than rats in a maze."

"Confusion is an emotion, Doctor." The lead Cyberman enunciated.

"Yeah, yeah, I know the spill. Cybermen are incapable of emotion." The Doctor remarked. "But I assure you that you'd wish to have one emotion in your little databanks as soon as you see the surprise I have."

"What emotion would that be, Doctor."

The Doctor paused for a moment before finally answering with one word: "Fear."

"You are belaying, Doctor."

"Am I? Well, we'll just see in three…two…one…"

SLIPT!

Whizzing right over the Doctor's head, an arrow had flown into the area and struck the lead Cyberman square in the chest, sending it falling to the ground with a loud metallic thud. The soldiers were taken by surprise, whereas the remaining Cybermen just stood where they were, appearing slightly perplexed (if possible). Soon the cry of an army arose from behind the Doctor and Snow White appeared with the seven dwarves. They engaged in battle with King George's soldiers and the Cybermen, the latter being the ones that took the most skill in defeating. Thanks to the Doctor, Snow and the dwarves knew the right weak spots to attack in with the Cybermen, striking at the heart with their pickaxes and dismantling every part of them.

As soon as the Cybermen went down, the Doctor used the sonic screwdriver to nullify their suits in the event that they came alive and tried to assimilate Snow or the dwarves. It was not long before more of King George's human soldiers appeared to back up their fallen comrades in overwhelming numbers. Quickly taking notice in them, the Doctor looked skyward and whistled loudly. Following on the whistle, an airborne army of fairies suddenly flew into the kingdom, their fluttering wings deafening the sounds from the battle and their sparkling bodies illuminating the area. The Doctor watched in extreme satisfaction as the fairies took down the oncoming soldiers with enough fairy dust to knock them out completely.

With the remaining soldiers of King George out, the Doctor discovered that he and the fairy tale army were able to disable the first half of security. "That's all of them," Snow told him.

The Doctor shook his head. "Not all – just this bunch. There'll be more waiting for us along the way."

"Then we should move before they catch us." Grumpy suggested.

"Agreed." The Doctor affirmed and then led the group down the street, continuing in the rescue of Prince Charming.