A/N - Ok I know it's been ages since an update but here we are!
I've been starting a new rewrite so I've been busy on that.
So as an apology for being so long, I'm giving you a sneak preview to the End Of Time, AND a snippet from one of the chapters from my new rewrite at the end of this chapter!
"Launching venting system!" Mr Smith suddenly announced, steam puffing out from the super computer as Mum pulled Luke and I into a desperate hug. "Maximum instruction." Mr Smith's screen flew up out of sight suddenly, revealing two big fans underneath which blew strongly through the attic, sucking in the spores into the fan. As they all got eaten away, Mr Smith's screen flew back down and silence filled the attic.
"Mr Smith?" Mum said getting up quickly as I layed Luke back down. "You are amazing." She said, running up to the upper level of the attic.
"Every computer has a cooling mechanism, applying it at full power has severely depleted my energy banks."
Mum picked up the Rackweed, holding it at arm's length, "What do I do with this thing?"
"Safe." I muttered, placing a kiss to Luke's head. Mum nodded, running over to the safe, pulling it open, throwing it in and quickly slamming it shut. "Luke can you here me?" I asked as Mum ran over to us. "It's Flo."
"Yeah, Flo." Luke muttered. "I'm fine."
Mum pulled open the top of his shirt carefully, seeing the infection of red and green blobs had spread, getting incredibly angry. I felt the anger raising up inside me, bubbling. They'd hurt my baby brother.
"Oh Luke." Mum whispered as she got up, walking back over to Mr Smith quickly. "What has it done to him?"
"The Rackweed spores not only reseed the plant, they are also it's weapon against anything or anyone standing in it's path." Mr Smith said.
"Surely Luke's much stronger than a normal human?!" I asked angrily, looking over at Mr Smith.
"He is and maybe be able to resist the effects for longer, however he inhaled the spores directly into his lungs."
"Oh Luke." Mum gulped.
"I'm so sorry." I whispered, tears in my eyes.
...
Mum stood behind Luke, stroking his head as I sat opposite him. We really had no idea. I didn't have a clue. And I'd noticed lately that I didn't know what was happening with a lot of things. With the 456 and now, with this.
"Monitoring Luke's condition." Mr Smith reported. "The poison has infected 63% of his cells. But time's running out."
"You analysed the plant!" I screamed, standing up and violently striding over to Mr Smith. "You must have some idea how to fight it!"
"The Rackweed's genetic structure is adapting constantly, it could take me days to create an antidote, even then it might not work. We have half an hour at the most."
"YOU ARE NOT TAKING HIM FROM ME!" I screamed loudly. Tears streamed down my face and I clutched my hair in anger, kicking a nearby chair across the room. "There has to be a way. He's 15, Mr Smith."
"I'm recieving a news report of a similar case to Luke's."
"Put it up Mr Smith." Mum gulped, walking over to me. The screen flicked over to outside a hospital, with a reporter outside.
"This morning a number of people have been admitted to Park Vale hospital after collapsing at home or at work. Doctor's are unsure what has caused the unusal marks on their bodies although it has been suggested they may be some sort of tropical disease." The reporter said before leading the camera over to an ambulance in the background. "This looks like another case of this now. Excuse me, doctor!" He called to a doctor walking over to the ambulance as a policeman standing guard outside the hospital, trying to stop the reporter coming near. "Cameron Marsh, BBC news." A paramedic and a nurse began to pull out a stretcher, "Any comment for BBC news?" The stretcher rolled out, holding a unconcious woman with the same markings as Luke before the camera cut off.
"How quickly can it spread?" I asked, wiping away the tears on my face.
"At it's current rate propergation," Mr Smith began. "The Rackweed will have seeded the whole of London in a few hours. "And in approximatley 3 days, the plant could have easily consumed the entire planet."
...
"Luke can you hear me?" Mum asked, sitting down next to Luke, carrying a glass of water, as I stood beside him.
"Yes Mum I can hear you." Luke nodded. Mum tipped the glass gently into his mouth and poured in some of the water. "We're leaving you with Mr Smith. He'll take care of you."
"Where are you going, Sarah Jane, Flo?" Mr Smith asked.
"If you can't give us an antidote, then we have no choice." I said bitterly, turning and looking back at Mr Smith. "The Blathereen started this, and we're going to stop it."
"But they'll be halfway across the galaxy by now."
"You think?" I laughed. "No, they've stuck around. Waiting for the plan to unfold. Scan for the ship, Mr Smith."
"Their ships is shielded," Mr Smith began as Mum and I walked over to the super computer. "Remember I did not detect it's approach, without their teleport coordinates, it cannot be located."
Mum opened up her watch, holding it out to Mr Smith, "Lucky I remembered it last night."
...
"You're going to be alright." I said calmly as Mum fixed the blanket over Luke. "Nobody's taking you away from me, ok?"
Mum placed a teary kiss to his cheek, squeezing his hand as we shared a look.
"Teleport directory confirm the Blathereen have immediatley left Earth's vicinity." Mr Smith reported.
Mum and I jumped up, running over to Mr Smith. "No, wait a moment." I began as we watched the diagram on screen. "That beams not leading away from Earth, it's relooping. AGAIN!" I exclaimed, spinning round before turning back to Mum, explaining everything very quickly to Mum. "Just like before. The last time, with the Slitheen they landed then faked their crash, they re-landed!" I looked back at the screen, seeing where they'd landed. "Antartica!"
...
Mum pulled her jacket on frantically, helping me put on mine as I glanced over at a weak Luke, still laying on the sofa.
"Mr Smith can you remotely activate the Rackweed teleport?" Mum asked. "Get us to their ship?"
"I only have enough energy left for a one way trip." Mr Smith said.
"We'll take our chances." I replied as Mum riffed through her back. "We're not going to stand here and watch Luke, die."
"Who will save the world if something happens to you?" Mr Smith asked as Mum pulled a blue suitcase from round the side of her desk, pulling out a big, red water gun.
"This time, it's about Luke." Mum said, looking at the gun intently.
"There's people out there." I said, glancing over at Luke. "Who'll protect the Earth. We've got Rani and Clyde, Martha, people like that." I breathed in sharply, looking back to Mr Smith. "Activate that teleport."
...
I breathed in sharply, Mum and I reappearing on the Blathereen ship in a golden light. I looked around the space tech room, it was small, with a table in the middle of the room, a chair either end of the table, with two bowls of green munge on. The Blathereen looked round from a screen, showing a map of London, on the other side of the room.
"This is loaded," I began as Mum aimed the red water gun at the Blathereen threateningly. "With vinegar." The Blathereen slowly raised their hands in the air. "You're going to do exactly as I say, or we'll blast you to oblivion." Mum slowly edged towards the Blathereen as I spoke, "My brother is dying. And I'm not going to let you or anyone take him away from me, so keep perfectly still," I nodded to Mum next to me. "She's feeling trigger happy."
"You're making a terrible mistake." Tree said.
"We didn't do anything we're innocent!" Leaf begged. "Honestly we are."
Mum quickly shot down at its foot, making it jump back quickly.
"I don't believe it." Mum hissed. "Now fix it."
"Alright, we knew the Rackweed would spread." Tree said. "But we didn't realise the damage it would do. We're sorry. We will reverse the process. Leaf," His wife turned to him. "We have no choice my dear."
"Entering computer code." Leaf sighed, turning back to the screen. "Destroy all Rackweed."
"The Rackweed is being eliminated. It'll take a few seconds."
Mum and I looked over at the screen, showing no Rackweed in London.
"Confirm Rackweed density on Earth." I said sternly, staring at the screen.
"Rackweed fully eliminated." The computer announced.
"Would you mind putting the weapon down, Sarah Jane?" Leaf asked.
Mum span round, aiming the gun at Leaf, "It's Miss Smith, to you."
"Please, Miss Smith."
Mum looked at Leaf warily before lowering it. Suddenly, Tree bashed her hand, spinning Mum round and putting her arm round her neck, grabbing her threateningly.
"NO!" I screamed as Tree grabbed hold of me, putting a claw round my neck. I could feel my heart in my throat, they had my Mum. They had infected Luke and the Rackweed was going to reach Clyde and Rani. My whole family... I managed to grab hold of Mum's hand, trying to calm her down as Leaf looked on.
"Let go of me!" Mum begged, wriggling around.
"Computer, return to normal view." Leaf said, and the screen flickered back to the oragne splodges across the map, mapping out where the Rackweed had infected. "Good try Miss Smith but not good enough!"
"Exactly the same phrase the Slitheen used." Mum muttered. I looked at her, having no idea what she meant.
"Now, we were just having dinner." Tree said. "Why don't you join us?"
"No thank you." Mum said, wriggling furiously as Leaf pushed over two chairs.
"But we insist." Tree said, throwing us forward and into the chairs. Leaf pushed round the chairs and two boltes wrapped round our wrists, attached to the chair arms.
"What is it with these?" Mum gasped, trying to yank her hands out as I watched, trying to stay as calm as possible, knowing full well that if I panicked, it might harm the baby.
"Just wanted to see if they worked." Leaf giggled as the two Blathereen peered over us from behind. "That chair cost a fortune!" The two cackled as I glanced down at my bump before shutting my eyes tightly.
...
"This is much more civilised, isn't it?" Tree asked. Mum and I sat either side of each other at the table, as Leaf and Tree sat either end, two bowls of Rackweed in front of them and around their mouths. "Are you sure you won't take a little Rackweed? It really is delicious."
"Now I understand why you're obsessed with it." Mum said, glancing between the two of them, now a lot calmer. "You're addicted to it."
"We are not!" Leaf defended. "We just love it, that's all. You'd understand if you tried some."
"And my brother is dying to fuel your addiction." I spat.
"Even we couldn't eat all that." Tree said. "Oh we wouldn't want to. A whole planet of Rackweed will be worth a fortune on the galactic market."
"Small as Earth is, it's still a useful plot of land." Leaf said in agreement.
"Billions of people dead, and all you see is a plot of land?!" Mum asked, furious.
"We're simple, farming folk, Miss Smith. But one day... our farm will span the entire galaxy!"
The two Blathereen laughed, before returning to their Rackweed.
I was going to kill them. When I got out of these shackles, and I would, I was going to rip them limb by limb, tear them to pieces with bare hands, and make them suffer. My thoughts stopped with a gulp, as I realised how violent I was being. It made me realise... I couldn't be a mother! I was truly unsafe I... I was so stupid! From day one, the whole universe, whether it was friend or foe, human, Time Lord or any other type of alien... I was warned I was dangerous. I'd just thought it was because I'd fallen in love with The Doctor, because I'd travelled with him for so long. But maybe it wasn't. I hadn't seen heard from the Doctor since we'd ended up on San Helios with Christina, so maybe I'd finally got what I wanted. Maybe, I was finally alone. And maybe, I'd always been warned about being dangerous because now I didn't have The Doctor around... There was something I was going to do. Something really stupid. And I'd grown tired with the universe a long time ago, but I knew when I was making a mistake. If I was hurting something or someone. And the only reason I'd do that was to protect my baby. And that's why I'd make a terrible mother. Of course, this all only being hypothetical. And for once in a really long time... I was wishing The Doctor was here.
Mum nudged me in the side from my thoughts. I looked up and she nodded over at the table, where next to a Rackweed plant sat two teleport bracelets.
...
Mum pulled one of her wrists, trying ot break out of the shackles as I watched with a sigh.
The two Blathereen span back on their chairs from the screen, looking at us, "What a pleasure to see someone as smug as Sarah Jane Smith destroy the planet she fought to save." Tree teased.
"Kill me by all means!" Mum begged. "But not the children! Not my children! Don't you have any of your own?"
"Oh no!" Leaf cried. "Nasty little things. Profit is our prodginy."
"Isn't using the Earth for a fast buck more the Slitheen style?" I asked calmly.
"How dare you we're nothing like the Slitheen!" Tree said, offended. "We're much, much worse."
"Good to hear." I muttered sarcastically.
"They lack our cunning vision." Leaf said. "Our good looks!"
"Now, now, Leaf, show some tolerance towards our relatives." Tree said.
Mum looked over with a gasp as I stared back, not really surprised.
"And there it is." I muttered. "What a surprise."
"Your relatives?" Mum asked.
"Didn't we say?" Tree asked. "We're double barrelled, Miss Smith."
"Ah, it's a pain that, isn't it?" I asked sarcastically. "Been there, done that. Maxwell Smith, Smith Maxwell. I just gave up with the Maxwell in the end."
"We're Slitheen-Blathereen." Leaf said, ignoring me. "We're descendants to Clam marriage many generations ago."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Mum asked. "You're as bad as they are." She spat.
"For that remark, we won't kill you. We'll keep you alive, to watch your beloved planet Earth die. And then we'll kill you." They turned back to the screen and I rolled my eyes. Threats used to scare me... but not anymore. I watched with a frown as Mum's hips bucked the in the air a few times, before I realised she was aiming for her pockets.
...
"That's what I like to see!" Tree sighed happily, watching the screen as the infection spread across London. "My wonderful little plant spreading."
I watched as Mum struggled, before finally reaching into her jacket pocket and pulling out her sonic lipstick. She quickly hide it in her hand as Leaf turned back to us.
"You know it was my husband who engineered this wonderful new strain of Rackweed." She said. "Reprogrammed to genetically reseed at a incredible rate." She finished, half turning back to the screen.
"The Rackweed song will be filling the air," Tree called over his shoulder. "How sweet it must sound."
"You mean that awful noise?" I laughed, the screeching sound of the Rackweed in the background. "Wouldn't call that a song. I've heard Ood sing as they were saved after 100 years of slavery, that's a song, I'll tell ya."
"It's a living thing. Communication is the main stay of all life."
Mum looked over at them suddenly, "Communication." She said quietly before glancing back to me. "That's interesting."
"Without that how can the Rackweed unite and colonise an entire planet?" Tree asked.
"Rackweed now at 93%." The computer announced. Mum quickly and quietly soniced the shackles on both of our wrists and grabbed hold of me, pulling me under the table.
"Miss Smiths?" Leaf asked as she and Tree span round from the screen. They looked around in shock to find us gone. "They can't have just gone!" She cried as the two of them got up, making their way to the other end of the room. Mum pulled me up, aiming her sonic at the teleportation bracelet.
"Missed something?" I asked casually.
"Leave that alone!" Leaf cried as Mum pressed the button on the sonic, teleporting us off.
...
I ran over to the sofa, rolling Luke over to face me, completely unconcious and blotchier than ever. Mum looked over my shoulder at him in shock, and everything suddenly became simple to me. I tensed up, getting up and moving out of Mum's way.
"I'm going to kill them." I whispered, as me and Mum got up, walking in front of Mr Smith, looking at the scan of Luke at 93% of the Rackweed infection, when a call from Clyde came through.
The call picked up, "Clyde, are you ok?" Mum asked.
"Yeah, yeah we're fine." Clyde said. "And we think we've found a way to kill the Rackweed. The school bell."
"Brilliant. You're both brilliant!"
"It seems to work but we're not sure why."
"It's because the Rackweed is connected by that terrible wailing sound." I said angrily, shaking with rage. "It's how the plant survives, it communicates. It must be how the plant survives."
"So we should blast the bell across the entire city?"
"Or something similar." Rani said.
"Good thinking Rani." Mum breathed. "Mr Smith?"
"I can do that." Mr Smith said. "But I would need to know the exact frequency."
"Uh, K9 can tell him." Clyde said awkwardly.
I snapped out of my anger for a moment, "What's K9 doing there?" I asked.
"I'll explain later." Clyde replied, and I automatically became angry again, glancing back at a nearly dead Luke. "K9, give Mr Smith the bell's frequency."
"1421.09 hertz." K9 replied.
The numbers appeared on screen and Mr Smith plotted out across the infected ares of London, "I am now connecting with every electrical appliance in the area invaded by the Rackweed." Mr Smith said. "And retuning them to meet the bell's frequency. Prepare yourself, Sarah Jane, Flo."
"Cover your ears, it's going to be really really loud." Mum said, covering her ears.
Suddenly, a piercing screech filled the air and Mum held her ears tightly. I stared into space, not doing anything, only thinking about the fact of what those aliens had done to my baby brother, not really caring about the crucial pain as blood trickled out one of my ear drums. I watched out of the corner of my eye as Mum stumbled her way over to Luke as the noise died down when Luke sat up, smiling at Mum. He opened his mouth to say something when he peered round her at me. He got up, walking over to me.
"Flo?" He asked softly. I ignored him, staring into space. He reached over gently, wiping a bit of the pool of blod trickling out of my ear and down my neck, across my face. "What happened?"
"Clyde and Rani, they're brilliant." I said stiffly as both Luke and Mum watched me with concern. "And so are you. I was more frightened than I have ever been in my entire life. I nearly lost the most important thing in the universe." I looked round at him. "You."
...
"Mr Smith." I began as me, Mum and Luke stood in front of Mr Smith. "If I needed you to recreate that noise from the Rackweed, but just in the attic, could you?"
"Yes, but for what purpose?" Mr Smith asked when Rani and Clyde bolted through the door.
"Sarah Jane!" Rani gasped, running over and hugging her when Clyde came up and pulled me and Luke into a hug.
"You ok?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah I'm fine." Luke nodded as Clyde pulled away. "Destroying the Rackweed seems to reverse it's effects." He said, gesturing to himself.
"And you two are absolute stars." Mum said. "What a team you make!"
"Ah just put it down to pure genius." Clyde grinned as K9 came rolling in.
"Mistress!" K9 said.
"K9!" Mum said, sitting down on the step in front of him. "What happened to you?"
"Rani and I took him for walkies." Clyde said lamely, clearly a lie.
"Don't drag me into this!" Rani said.
"Negative, Master Clyde took me to school to assist with his tests.! K9 said.
"He did, did he?" Mum asked, looking back up at Clyde. "Clyde, you don't need to cheat." She said, getting up, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Have faith in your own abilities."
Suddenly, a orange light filled the attic and Leaf and Tree appeared at the top of the attic.
"We meet again, Miss Smith." Leaf said, tauntingly.
"Oh why don't you just go home?!" I groaned, stepping forward and staring at them. "Cause I am bloody fed up!"
"The Slitheen-Blathereen do not take kindly to orders." Tree said.
"The Slitheen-Blathereen!" Clyde said. "I knew it!"
"Then they're only half bad." Rani whispered.
"Rani's right!" Mum said. "Why don't you forget your Slitheen side? Give your Blathereen side a chance?"
"Not all your family can be crooked!" Clyde spat.
"The Blathereen are soft hearted, do gooders, nothing but little management!" Tree said.
"We prefer the view from the top!" Leaf cried as they both raised their claws. "I've been dying to say this for ages: LET THE HUNT BEGIN!"
"Mr Smith." I called back with a sigh as everyone stared, shocked. I covered my ears this time as the screeching filled the air. The Blathereen writhed in pain before suddenly stopping, sharing a look.
"It's our sense of smell that is highly developed. Not our hearing!" Leaf cackled. Suddenly, they stopped, glancing down at their stomachs as they began to make a squelching sound.
"That's enough Mr Smith!" I called over the screeching.
We stared at the Blathereen with a frown as they shouted out in pain, the squelching getting louder and louder.
"What have you done to us?" Tree asked.
"My stomach!" Leaf cried as we watched their stomachs move gruesomly.
"I'm sorry." I said simply. "Actually... no I'm not." Suddenly, they burst, orange goo flying across the room, and all over us. We stared in shock, covered in the rubbish. Luke glanced down at himself, not sure what to make of it before we all slowly.
"Why does this always happen to me?" Clyde asked.
"Mum, Flo." Luke laughed. "You did it."
"They were going to kill us!" Mum said. "I had to do it."
"What did you do?" Rani asked.
"On their ship, all they did was fill their faces with Rackweed. I knew their stomachs would still be full of it."
"The destruction of the undigested Rackweed created methane gas." K9 said. "It could not be contained."
"So they fated themselves to death?" Clyde asked.
"Yep." I nodded.
"Look this isn't how it should end!" Mum said. "There should have been another way. A better way!" With a smile we all moved into a hug. A squelchy, wet, orange, gooey hug. "Which is more to say about people who cheat at tests." Mum said, placing a hand on Clyde's shoulder.
"Who's ever going to want to learn about the life cycle of a plant?" Clyde asked, frowning. Rani coughed, and the four of us gestured to the goo covered over us to him. "Fair enough."
"Now fetch yourself a mop, in the kitchen, and clean up this mess!"
"Smoooooth." Someone laughed. We looked up at the doorway, and there stood Hero, looking at us, stunned.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"The front door was open." He chuckled.
...
I sat on the garden bench, everyone cleared up now, watching Rani, lay out a table cloth of the table. Mum grinned at her, and peered at the back of a barbeque box as Luke walked out of the house with a bowl of salad. He put it down on the table and Rani grabbed a piece of tomato, only for him to knock her hand away. Mum walked over to Hero, who had taken control of the barbeque, smiling at him, as if not sure what to make of him. Truth is, I wasn't sure either.
"One clean attic." Clyde said, walking out, with the mop in his hand. Clyde walked over to the barbeque, glancing at the sausages that weren't burnt like Mum usually did. Clyde sighed, looking up at Hero with a smile, "You didn't let her cremate our picnic!" He said cheerfully.
Hero shook his head, pulling off the apron he was wearing and threw it over Clyde's head, handing him the tongs before walking over to me, slumping down on the bench.
"Thank you for coming." I said, turning to face him. "I've been in a bad place lately and..." I breathed in sharply as Hero nodded, clearly knowing about me walking out on The Doctor. I stared at him, the detail in his face. He seemed so familiar. He kind of looked like Luke, really, but not. It's like I knew him, but didn't. "Hero..." I began warily. "Who are you?"
He let out a small chuckle, smiling at me, "Oh Flo Smith." He laughed. "Spoilers."
...
The End Of Time
"What do you want, Master?" I asked quietly, putting one hand on his shoulder, the other on his cheek.
"I need you." The Master whispered. "You have to be there, or we'll all die."
"We're all gonna die Master." I laughed. "One day."
The Master sighed, leaning his forhead against mine, clutching onto the bottom of my top. "I'll be watching when you die." He said sternly.
It's funny really, being comfortable with the him, but I'd become too tired, too worn out, and too out travelled to be wary of the enemy. Play with fire, because what else is there to do? There's nothing else to do apart from risk it, knowing I will most probably die in the process. Because all I really had left to do was die. I'd done everything else. I'd pissed off more of the universe than The Doctor had and I had nothing left.
I smiled at him, "I know you will. Cause there's no way he will be."
"You know he's your murderer?" He asked, gently removing my hand from his cheek, holding it so we were slowly swaying, dancing to the Silent Night humming in the background.
"Yes." I said softly, our eyes locking. "You know I'm his?"
"Of course."
"Dancing with the devil." I laughed quietly. "How very appropriate."
...
I Believe In Her: Daleks In Manhattan
"Martha's waiting in the console room."
"It's not fair you're not taking her." Zara began, walking past him and down the corridor. The Doctor winced, about to speak when she continued, "'One more trip' you say, it's not fair, Doctor."
The Doctor rolled his eyes, walking a step behind her, "Oh great," He muttered aloud. "I let you into my ship and I'm being ordered around!"
Zara laughed, glancing back at him as he gave her a smile, shaking his head, "It's my spaceship now, boy! You've let me in now."
"Oi!" The Doctor pouted.
"Well I can fly her and I know you said only one trip but I'm very persuasive."
"Doesn't mean anything."
Zara looked back with a smirk, "For now. But when I leave you on a distant planet and run off with your TARDIS, you'll be screwed then." She joked, winking at him, before turning back round.