After blocking off the door, Molly and Nicholas retreated back into the former Tsar's room. They were nearly caught by a passing guard, who asked suspiciously why they were changing rooms in the middle of the night, but Molly was able to deter his suspicions. She claimed that the Tsarveich had woken up and said he was thirsty and they were on their way to get him water. The guard rolled his eyes and grumbled that he'd get someone else to get it for him, and that the Tsar wasn't supposed to be out of his room, before storming off. Molly let out a breath of relief that they'd managed to fool him, but she knew they couldn't keep it up for long.

When they finally got inside the Tsar's room, the rest of the family was waiting anxiously inside, looking up immediately when they came in. "What happened?" Anastasia asked immediately.

"Did you get the alien?" Aleksei asked almost over top of his sister. He seemed to have gotten over the earlier fright of the Doctor being taken, and was full of childish eagerness and excitement again.

Nicholas nodded wearily. "Yes, we got it," he told his son. The former Tsar crossed the room to sit on the bed, suddenly looking older and more tired. Not like the Doctor, a man being crushed by the weight of his past, but like a man who's been put in charge for too long and isn't sure how to go on.

Molly decided to spare him and take over for a bit. "Now we just need to figure out what to do with it." Quickly she related everything that Taark had told them, and what she had offered him in return, concluding, "He won't tell us where the Doctor is until he's seen the TARDIS, but I can't let him near her."

Olga looked thoughtful. "We could just search the house for your friend," she pointed out.

"That would take too long," Molly argued, "and the guards would get suspicious. There's got to be a way to get Taark to tell us."

The family looked at each other in baffled confusion. Tentatively, Maria suggested, "Tell him you need the Doctor to access your ship?"

Molly thought about it for a moment. It wasn't a bad idea, and it was worth a shot. "That could work, thanks Maria." She straightened, turning back to the Tsar. "Nicholas, let's go talk to him again. Maybe we can get the Doctor's location from him this time. First though, I think it'll help if I can find out more about him, so I'll see if I can get him to show me his true form." Nicholas and Aleksei had only gotten a quick look at the aliens, and their description had been less than detailed. If she saw the true form of the Khaynen for herself, she might get a better idea of how to beat them, if necessary.

The two turned and headed out the door and back toward the Grand Duchesses' room. Before they could reach the door, they were met by one of the kitchen staff, who gruffly handed her the glass of water she'd requested and stormed off. Molly grasped the glass uncertainly, the glass surface icy to the touch, before shrugging and taking it into the room with her.

Taark still sat on one of the cots, watching them enter with the same sneer. Molly approached him confidently, trying to mask the uncertainty over her bluff. "Taark," she greeted calmly, "We'll discuss taking you to the ship, but first things first. It's rude discussing business in a disguise, don't you think?"

He blinked in surprise, looking at Molly with a raised eyebrow. Then he gave a slight nod. Slowly, he began to change, pale skin hardening to black scales, brown eyes widening and turning smoky gray, pupils and white irises disappearing completely. There was a wave of heat from the creature as he changed, like Nicholas and Aleksei had described from their encounter, then it was over.

The alien's true form was slightly taller than a human, with slimmer limbs and a lean form. His entire body was covered in sleek black scales, like snakeskin, but smaller, with long, slim fingers that ended in claws. His face was scrunched up like a bat's, with two great horns sprouting from his head, several smaller ones running down the ridge of his back. His eyes were wide gray orbs, the pupils just barely visible, slightly darker patches of gray. The guard uniform had vanished, replaced by a sleek gray athletic suit of sorts.

Nicholas started at the sight of the alien, but Molly remained unfazed, staring coolly at the Khaynen. She didn't recognize the alien from anywhere, but maybe something she saw would give her a hint of weakness or anything that could be used to get the Doctor back.

Taark's voice seemed even more metallic now as he said, "Very well, human, I am demasked. Now we can talk." There was a mocking edge to his tone, cruel amusement in his eyes.

Molly opened her mouth to make her offer - only to be cut off by a slight sound. The turning of the doorknob next door, at the Tsar's room. Molly and Nicholas both froze, sharing a quick, panicked glance. No one should be entering or leaving that room.

That sound was followed by light scuffling sounds, making up Molly's mind. "Stay here, she told Taark firmly, then whirled around and bolted for the door. She felt a brief rush of annoyance when she noticed Nicholas following her - now who would watch Taark and make sure he stayed put? - but she knew that if his family was really in danger, she couldn't well expect him to sit back and do nothing.

They burst into the Tsar's room, greeted by the sight of two Khaynens in true form with the rest of the family. Anastasia and Tatiana were standing protectively in front of the rest of the family. Alexandra and Olga seemed to be frozen in shock, and Maria was shielding Aleksei. The aliens were crouching forward, shoulders tensed and sharp teeth bared. No one seemed to be injured yet, as Molly noted as her gaze swept over the room.

"Hey!" she called out as loudly as she dared. It was the middle of the night, but there could still be guards to hear them. The two Khaynens wheeled around to face her, snarling fiercely at her. She and Nicholas stood firmly in front of the door, unarmed but now more completely outnumbering the aliens. In a sharp voice she ordered, "Leave them alone."

The aliens' lips pulled back, teeth bared in cruel grins. One spoke in a higher voice in Taark's, probably female. "They will be silenced," she purred smoothly, "and so must you."

She lunged straight at Molly, her fellow going for Nicholas. The Doctor abhorred violence of any kind, but that didn't mean he was against letting his companions learn how to defend themselves. Molly jumped back out of her range, circling around quickly to stand in front of the Romanovs. The Khaynen gave a frustrated hiss, swiping with extended claws at Molly, who blocked the blow with her arm. She wasn't quick enough to fend off the next blow. Claws sliced down her shoulder, causing her to jerk back with a cry of pain.

As she did, the glass of water in her hand was jerked violently, the contents splashing out towards the Khaynen. There was a slight sizzling sound as the cold water hit her scales, and the creature let out a shriek of pain. Molly clutched her now-bleeding shoulder, waiting for the next attack, but the Khaynen seemed a little disoriented now, gray eyes blinking uncertainly.

After a few moments, the creature moved to attack again, only to pause as Alexandra and Olga stepped up beside Molly, fully out of their momentary funks. Nicholas had warded off his Khaynen long enough to join them, with Anastasia and Tatiana moving in to close the ranks, a firm wall blocking Maria and Aleksei. The Khaynens hung back, uncertain.

Molly held her head up, glaring evenly at the aliens. "There's only two of you," she pointed out coldly. "You won't win this fight easily, and the guards will be around to make their rounds soon. What happens to your little take-over plot when you're found standing over our bodies, hmm?"

The Khaynens paused, sharing a quick glance before starting to change. In a few moments, two guards stood before them instead of two aliens. They glared at the Romanovs with ugly sneers, backing away towards the door. "We'll be back," one warned in an ugly snarl before the two slipped out past the door, shutting it sharply behind them.

The family all sighed in relief, but Molly just stared at the glass in her hand, her thoughts whirling. Cold water had disoriented the Khaynen, had made it stop in its tracks, if only for a few moments. And she'd felt heat coming off Taark when he'd transformed, almost as though it had cost energy - energy in the form of heat. That was it! That was their weakness! And that was how she would beat them.

The companion was so caught up in her thoughts, it took her a minute to realize her name was being called. "Molly!" She snapped her head around, startled, to see Tatiana staring at her shoulder. "You're bleeding," she observed with concern.

Molly had forgotten the wound in her sudden rush of inspiration, but now the pain rushed back into the cuts, shoulder burning like fire. She winced, clutching her shoulder with one hand. After a few moments, the pain dulled, if only slightly. "I'm fine," she assured the Grand Duchess through gritted teeth. She had never been injured this badly in any of her TARDIS travels, but the pain wasn't intolerable.

Tatiana narrowed her eyes, looking unimpressed. She grabbed Molly by the other arm, dragging her towards the bed. "Come on," she said firmly, "you're not doing anyone any good while you're injured." She forced Molly to sit, then she and Alexandra took a quick look at her wound. Tatiana frowned. "You'll need stitches," she informed the pathologist, "but I don't have anything to use."

"It's fine," Molly assured her. "I'm fine for now, it'll just have to wait until I get back on the TARDIS."

The Grand Duchess pursed her lips, clearly dying to help Molly but aware there was nothing she could do. "Fine," she finally conceded, "but as soon as you can, get stitches."

"Meanwhile," Alexandra proposed briskly, "lets get it cleaned and wrapped up."

Mother and daughter set immediately to work, using the rest of Molly's water to clean the wound, then getting a swath of clean sheet and wrapped it tightly around her shoulder. The Tsarina's uncertainty and weariness melted away, replaced by a cool, confident professionalism. She and Tatiana worked briskly, neither breathing a word as they dealt with the wound. Molly was impressed, especially since both had seemed so tired and defeated earlier.

When they were done, she slipped her jacket back over the wrapping, hiding it as best could. It still burned like anything, but it would do for the present. "Thanks," she told the mother and daughter gratefully. "You two could really be doctors."

Alexandra just smiled tiredly, but Tatiana seemed to brighten at her comment, basking just a little in the praise.

Molly leaned forward, switching back to the line of thought she'd had before the interruption. "Listen, when we were fighting the Khaynens, I noticed something. You said you felt heat flooding off the one you saw transform?"

Nicholas nodded, looking puzzled. "Yes, and from Taark too."

"And when I spilled cold water on the one we were fighting, she seemed disoriented." Molly grinned, confidence in her theory building. "Listen, I'm willing to bet these aliens use heat as energy, like plants, drawing heat from the sun in order to grow. Transforming requires a lot of energy, so it uses up a lot of heat, and forcing cooler temperatures on them seems to take away their energy."

The former Tsar frowned. "Alright, seems logical. But what good is that?"

Molly ignored the question, turning to Alexandra and the girls. "Is there a kitchen here?" she asked urgently.

They looked surprised at the question, but after a moment, they nodded. "What do you need from there?" Maria asked curiously.

The pathologist's grin grew. "Ice," she answered. "Lots and lots of ice, and water. If we can get these aliens cold enough to knock them out, we can get them safely off-planet."

Aleksei, who had wheeled up to join his siblings, frowned. "But what about the Doctor?"

"I'll try to get them to tell me first. And of course, I'll try to warn them off before I do anything. Everyone deserves a chance. But if they don't tell me, I'm sure he'll be able to find his way out once there aren't aliens guarding him."

The family shared uncertain glances. Nicholas finally spoke up, asking Molly bluntly, "Is this really going to work?"

Molly remembered all the times she'd been forced to take charge since she started traveling with the Doctor. She remembered Hooverville, and Frank's death. But she'd been right then, and she was right now, she was sure. If the Doctor followed any sort of philosophy, it was to follow your instincts, and you'd be okay in the end. She had to trust herself to be right.

"It will," she promised the former Tsar.

Nicholas gave her an evaluating look for a few moments before nodding, uncertainty fading into respect. "Very well, miss Hooper. Let's get started, then."

SCENEBREAK

Back in the Grand Duchesses' room, Molly was surprised to see Taark still sitting patiently on the cot, sharp teeth pulled back in the same smirk. She approached, eyebrows raised. "You're still here then," she commented lightly. "Didn't you hear the commotion next door? Two of your friends could've used your help over there."

Taark shrugged, unconcerned. "I've got no reason to leave," he told her. "I've got a sweet deal waiting for me right here."

Molly sat on the cot across from him, studying his expression thoughtfully. "They might not appreciate this deal as much as you seem to," she suggested.

"It's a good deal, they'll see reason," Taark said confidently. "And if not, well, maybe it's time someone new made decisions for this family."

Molly raised an eyebrow, but before she could question him further, Nicholas addressed the alien for the first time. "And what if any of your family refuses to leave?" His voice was filled with quiet disgust, gaze dark as he glared at the alien. "You'll just leave them here to rot? Your own family?"

Taark grinned wider, a shark's grin. "Greed and politics, my friend. That's all there is to it."

Molly saw Nicholas tense with anger, and decided to intervene before things got ugly. "Alright, Taark, listen." The alien turned to her, brows raised in invitation. "We'll show you to the ship, but I need assurance you're not just going to have your family kill us the moment you're onboard."

"What kind of assurance?" Taark asked.

"Your family," Molly told him bluntly. "All of them, here, in the Tsar's room, tomorrow night. You can go and bring them here." She wasn't sure about this part of her plan, but Taark really seemed interested in the TARDIS, so he would probably stick to his word.

Taark looked surprised for a moment, then grinned even wider. "No need. I can call them from here, little trick of the Khaynens." He reached out a hand, which Molly accepted and shook. The alien tipped his head slightly. "So, we have a deal?"

Molly nodded. "We have a deal," she echoed.

Here's another chapter for ya.

I am so freaking close to being done with High School. I've finished all my exams, all I have left is an Awards Ceremony, where I'm apparently getting an award but I wasn't told what kind, and Graduation itself. Then I'll be able to update more frequently.