PREVIOUSLY ON DOCTOR WHO
The Doctor (in his Eighth body) and Clara find their component on the spaceship and escape the clutches of the Daleks, just as the Doctor regenerates again. Now in the body of his Seventh incarnation, the TARDIS lands in 16th century Germany in search of the next part. But the Doctor and Clara are ambushed and captured by the Rani, who has allied herself with the Daleks.
The Doctor and Clara soon found themselves chained to a dungeon wall by shackles, the Rani and the Daleks pacing before them. The Doctor had changed faces again as they were held prisoner. His new body had an impish face and a head full of blonde curls. He had by this time lost his panama hat.
The Rani approached the Doctor with the stun-stick. "Are you ready for your procedure, Doctor?"
The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Not really. But I assume you'll continue regardless."
The Rani chuckled. "I must say, it's rather nice to have you revisiting forms that I am already familiar with.
She lightly touched the stun-stick to the Doctor's shoulder and sent a small shock through his body. The Doctor vibrated and gritted his teeth, tensing in his shackles.
"THE DOCTOR MUST BE EX-TER-MIN-ATED," a Dalek said, approaching the Rani. "WHY DO YOU TOY WITH HIM?"
"I told you, I need him for experimentation," the Rani said, turning to face the alien. "We have to wait for the chameleon arch to repair itself. And if you still want use of my TARDIS and the Doctor's head, you will do exactly as I say."
"IT IS NOT WISE TO THREATEN A DALEK," the Dalek warned.
"While you still need my skills," the Rani said, "you will do exactly as I say."
"They're Daleks," the Doctor said. "The only reason they're working with you is just so that they can betray you later."
The Rani turned to face the Doctor.
"Oh what?" the Doctor said. "Am I the only one here that thought of that? The Daleks' only goal in life is extermination of all non-Dalek life. Do you honestly believe that they would not have an ulterior motive here?"
"I am in power here, Doctor," the Rani hissed.
"YOU HAVE NEVER HAD POWER," the head Dalek said.
The Rani turned to face it. "Excuse me?"
"DALEKS WOULD NEVER BE SUBSERVIENT TO A TIME LORD. YOU AND THE DOCTOR SHALL BE EX-TER-MIN-ATED."
"Oh, and let's not place the Rani completely in the innocent," the Doctor said. "After all, she was planning on using you in experimentation after this whole ordeal."
"You have no proof," the Rani hissed.
"You're willing to go halfway across the universe for the sake of an experiment. That's all the proof I need."
"DALEKS ARE NOT TO BE PIGS FOR EXPERIMENTATION," the head Dalek shrieked.
"You cannot trust the word of the Doctor," the Rani said. "Every word he says is lies."
"HE WAS CORRECT ABOUT THE DALEK BETRAYAL. LOGICALLY, HE IS CORRECT ABOUT YOURS."
The Rani raised her laser gun. "You may try a betrayal. I've killed Daleks before, and I shall kill Daleks again."
"AND I HAVE MASSACRED TIME LORDS BEFORE. THE FIRST SHOT MUST BE FIRED."
The end of the Rani's laser erupted and blasted a hole in the Dalek's casing, sending sparks flying from the cybernetic shell. The other Daleks turned on the Time Lady and started firing at her with cries of "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"
But the Rani was prepared, as she sidestepped and dodged the Daleks' beams, sending them exploding into their fellow members. She fired her own weapon in between dodges and incapacitated a few other Daleks.
As the battle waged on before them, Clara fidgeted nervously as she dreaded any of the deadly beams coming towards her. The Doctor seemed calm, and in the blink of an eye, he managed to slip out of his shackled and head over to Clara. He quickly undid her chains and ordered her to run.
The Doctor and Clara sprinted through the dungeon, ducking and dodging the battle between the Daleks and the Rani. They ran up a tall staircase and exited into the ruins of a castle. They worked their way out of the wreckage and found the Doctor's TARDIS not too far away, standing within Heziah's half-destroyed hut.
"Did you just turn the Daleks and the Rani against each other?" Clara asked.
"Indeed," the Doctor replied. "I knew that both the Rani and the Daleks would both be out for themselves. I simply needed to reveal this in order to accelerate the breakdown of this alliance. I also needed a distraction in order to escape. Those shackles are child's play to someone who trained alongside Houdini."
The two travellers approached the TARDIS and the Doctor opened the door.
"Typical Time Lord!" Heziah cried from her hiding place. "Destroying homes and then fleeing as if nothing happened!"
"Honestly, do you ever shut up?" the Doctor snapped as he stepped into the TARDIS with Clara.
The Doctor approached the console and clicked in the next destination.
"One more component to go," the Doctor said.
"Which is?" Clara asked.
"A machine of this caliber of power needs a powerful conductor, and the only element that could possibly serve this purpose would be Shimmerian diamond."
"And where will we find that?" Clara asked.
The Doctor pulled down on a lever and activated the TARDIS's materialization.
"The British crown jewels," the Doctor answered.
Clara raised an eyebrow and was about to question this, but she decided against it. "So what, we're going to break into the Tower of London?"
The Doctor traipsed to the door. "Not quite."
He reached into the box on the door and pulled out a telephone. He dialed a number and waited a few seconds for an answer.
"Kate Stewart!" he said into the phone. "This is the Doctor." He paused. "Well run my voice through a recognizer, you'll find me there. Listen, I need access into the Tower of London. I don't have much time to explain, but it involves a renegade Time Lord and me regenerating backwards. Thank you."
The Doctor hung up the phone and headed back to the console as his skin started to glow.
The TARDIS blinked into existence in front of the entrance to the Tower of London, the guards at the door barely blinking at it. A few of the spectators in the area glanced at the materializing police box, but the TARDIS's perception filter caused their minds to disregard it within a second.
The TARDIS fully appeared and the door opened. The Doctor exited, with a different face again. This one still had blonde hair, but it was straight and combed into a stylish part. He had a pleasant, open face and a strong chin, and the look on his face meant business. Clara exited the TARDIS right behind him.
The two travellers marched up to the guards. "The Doctor and Clara Oswald," the Doctor said quickly. "UNIT clearance one-seven-eight-six-five—"
"We know your face," one of the guards said. "You have clearance."
The Doctor nodded as he and Clara entered the Tower.
"Couldn't we have just materialized inside of the Tower?" Clara asked.
"I'd rather do this legally at the moment," the Doctor said as they fast-walked down a hallway. "Had we materialized inside, we'd most likely incur the wrath of the police, and we don't have time for that. Better to play it safe."
Clara smiled. "Not used to you playing it safe. Is this what this incarnation was like?"
The Doctor stuck his hands in his pockets and smiled. "More or less."
They rounded a few more corners until they wound up at the entrance of another room guarded by a few guards.
"I'm assuming you know my face, too?" the Doctor asked.
The guards answered by stepping aside.
The Doctor grinned. "Good old Kate," he mused.
The time travellers entered the room and viewed the large glass case, which held the exalted British crown jewels. The glittering golden crow, scepter, and globe sat on soft velvet pedestals, their large incrusted gems shimmering in the bright light of the room.
"I've never visited the crown jewels," Clara said, breathless.
"I have," the Doctor said. "I was there when they were formed. Beautiful process."
"So which one's the diamond?"
The Doctor pointed at the crown, smudging his finger on the glass. "That big gem there, in the middle."
"How are we going to get it?" Clara asked.
The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver in response. "Do you even have to ask?" he said with a smile.
The Doctor aimed his screwdriver at the glass and activated it, sending a shrill buzz through the room. The front of the glass exploded into minute shatters and clattered to the floor.
The guards at the door flinched and whipped their heads around.
The Doctor grinned sheepishly at them. "Sorry. Official Time Lord business. Send the bill to me."
He reached into the case and sonicked around the edge of the front gem of the crown. It loosened, and the Doctor held the impressive jewel before Clara. He smiled into the reflective surface of the gem.
Suddenly, the Doctor's skin started glowing gold. The light reflected off the gem and sent long beams skittering around the room.
The regenerative explosion happened, and the Doctor stood with a new face again. This one had large expressive eyes filled with madness and a mop of brown curls on his head. He also appeared considerably taller.
He ran his finger across his long nose. "We're getting close now." His new voice was deep and rich.
"To what?" Clara asked.
"The end, to my first regeneration. We won't have much time now."
The Doctor and Clara ran from the room as the Time Lord pocketed the Shimmerian diamond. They retraced their steps and sprinted down the hallways as they made their way out of the Tower of London.
As soon as they exited the Tower, the Doctor and Clara froze in their tracks.
The Rani stood in front of the TARDIS, her own time machine parked right next to it. Her clothes were covered in scorch marks and tears, a trophy from a mighty battle. Her eyes were filled with almost as much madness as the Doctor's.
"You're not getting away this time, Doctor," she warned.