"Obviously the Archangel Network would seem to be the Master's greatest weakness," Docherty told the group. "Fifteen satellites all around the Earth, still transmitting. That's why there's so little resistance. It's broadcasting a telepathic signal that keeps people scared."

"We could just take them out," Tom suggested eagerly.

Docherty gave him a withering glare. "We could. Fifteen ground to air missiles. You got any on you? Besides, any military action, the Toclafane descend."

Molly shook her head. "They're not really called the Toclafane," she told them. "That's just a name the Master stole."

"Then what are they, then?" Docherty grumbled.

"That's why we're here," Sherlock told her. "We need to know our enemy, and we figure you can help."

Greg took out the CD from his rugged brown jacket. He wore a dark T-shirt underneath, while Molly was in a black leather jacket and black pants. Sherlock was the only one whose look hadn't changed. He was as attached to this coat and scarf as the Doctor was to his coat and pinstripes. He handed the disc to Docherty, explaining, "The Toclafane can't be hurt by guns, blades, bombs, whatever. Basically invincible, which is why there hasn't been much in the way of uprisings. There's literally no way to fight them. And no one's been able to look at one up close."

"Except once," Molly continued. "Just once, in South Africa, lightning brought one down by chance. The readings are on the disc."

Docherty took the disc and popped it into her computer, giving it an angry whack as it struggled to read the CD. "Oh, whoever thought we'd miss Bill Gates."

"So is that why you traveled the world?" Tom asked curiously. "To find a disc?"

Molly shook her head. "No, that was just luck."

"I heard stories that you walked the Earth to find a way to build a weapon," Docherty said in a low voice. Molly stiffened, sharing a furtive glance with Greg and Sherlock. The readings popped up on-screen. "There! A current of fifty eight point five kiloamperes transferred charge of five hundred and ten megajoules precisely."

"Can you recreate that?" Tom asked.

Docherty nodded. "I think so. Easily. Yes."

Molly grinned. "Right then. Lets go catch us a sphere."

SCENEBREAK

As the rest of them lied in wait, Tom went out and shot a gun in view of one of a Toclafane. They could hear the shots, and the whizzing of the Toclafance.

"Here it comes," Molly breathed. "Ready?"

Docherty let out an impatient growl. "You do your job, I'll do mine!" She had a machine set up to generate the same amount of electricity that had brought down the Toclafane in South Africa. If it didn't work, they were toast.

Tom ran in, a Toclafane zooming in after him. "Now!" he shouted at them.

Docherty started up her machine, sending electricity sparking across the narrow arch. Tom was clear through already, but the Toclafane got caught in the current. It trembled with the power of the electricity surging through it, then it dropped to the ground like a dead weight.

The professor switched off the machine, and the group hurried over to the fallen Toclafane. The sphere sat there, completely unresponsive. Greg and Molly shared a triumphant grin, but Docherty cut them off with a glare. "That's only half the job," she reminded them. "Let's find out what's inside."

The three travelers had to work together to lift the Toclafane and carry it inside, setting it heavily on the workshop table. Docherty and Sherlock immediately set to work getting it open. "There's some sort of magnetic clamp," Docherty muttered. "Hold on, I'll just trip the - "

She was cut off as the metal of the Toclafane's shell slid back, revealing a wrinkled, wizened head. Molly jumped slightly as it blinked it's shriveled eyes opened, staring around at the people in the room. Docherty let out a strangled gasp. "It's alive," she breathed.

The creature's eyes widened as it noticed Molly. "Molly!" it cried delightedly. "Molly Hooper!"

Molly froze. She'd planned out everything, from the year's start to end, but this wasn't something she'd anticipated. Tom looked at her with wide eyes. "It knows you."

"Sweet, kind Molly Hooper," the creature chirped. "You helped us to fly."

Greg's brow furrowed. "Wait, what are you talking about?"

"You led us to salvation," it continued.

"Who are you?" Molly demanded.

"You were right," it said softly. "There's nothing worse than traveling alone."

In the grim year since she'd last seen the Doctor, Molly had prided herself on becoming rather unflappable. With all she'd seen in time and space, and on the Earth the Master had ravaged, there wasn't much depravity left to surprise her. But now, she jerked back with a gasp, staring at the Toclafane in horror. "No," she whispered. "No, no, no, it can't be, you can't be him!"

"We share each other's memories," the horrible, twisted creature cheerfully informed her. "You sent him to Utopia."

Sherlock's eyes widened at the familiar name, and even Greg understood at this point, though he had not been there himself. He'd heard enough from his two companions to understand what was happening. "Wait, are we saying they're...?" Molly could barely collect herself enough to nod. With everything she'd seen, every low she'd seen the Master reach, she had not expected this, even from him.

Tom looked from one traveler to the other, unnerved by their obvious distress. "What's it talking about? What's it mean?"

"What are they?" Docherty added.

Molly couldn't find the words to explain yet. Tom looked more scared now. "Molly. Molly, tell us. What are they?"

She had to swallow a few times before she could get the words out. "They're us," she whispered. "The Toclafane are the human race, billions and billions of years in the future. This is what the Master has made us."

Molly shook her head, fighting back the tears that had suddenly sprung up. "I should've seen it coming. The Doctor, that friend of mine, he has this time machine, and the Master took it. Before he did, the Doctor locked the coordinates so it could only travel back and forth between here and the end of the universe. He must have followed the human race to Utopia and brought them back as soldiers. His soldiers against humanity." She felt sick at the thought. "Utopia was humanity's last hope to escape, when everyone else had died. A legend of a place of hope and sanctuary."

"There was no solution, no diamonds," the Toclafane informed her. "Just the dark and the cold. But then the Master came with his wonderful time machine to bring us back home."

"But that's a paradox," Docherty breathed, staring at the creature with total disgust and horror. "If you're the future of the human race, and you've come back to murder your ancestors, you should cancel yourselves out. You shouldn't exist."

Sherlock's eyes widened. "Ah, and that's the paradox machine," he breathed. "Allowing the future of the human race to murder their ancestors without consequence. Brilliant."

He was doing his eerily sociopathic praise of sociopaths again, but it'd been a long time since Sherlock had seemed interested like this, so Molly let it slide.

"But what about us?" Tom asked shakily. "We're the same species. Why do you kill so many of us?"

The Toclafane let out a eerie giggle. "Because it's fun," it giggled. Repulsed, Tom shot the thing in the face. Molly was struck by a memory of another terrifying man saying the exact same thing, and had to repress a shudder. One James Moriarty was bad enough, but a whole race of them? This had to end.

SCENEBREAK

After they disposed of the Toclafane, Docherty turned roughly to Molly. "I think it's time we had the truth, Miss Hooper." she growled. "The legend says you've traveled the world to find a way of killing the Master. Tell us, is it true?"

Molly hesitated, sharing a quick glance with Greg and Sherlock, then nodded decisively. Time to tell her. She turned to Docherty and told her quietly, "Before I escaped, the Doctor told me his plan. See, he and the Master, they're both Time Lords, and they've both been coming to Earth for years, time and time again, and they've been noticed. Torchwood, UNIT, there's so many out there who've been working out ways to protect Earth from rogue Time Lords, and now they've figured out a way."

Greg opened up the case he'd been carrying, revealing the gun, with the three compartments. Tom looked at it with wide eyes, picking it up with a grin. "All you need to do is get close. I can shoot the Master dead with this."

Docherty warily eyed his handling of the weapon. "Actually, you can put that down now, thank you very much." Tom frowned, but obeyed, setting the weapon down.

"The point is that you can't just kill a Time Lord, at least not easily," Sherlock told them. "They have an ability called Regeneration. When they're killed, their cells rebuild themselves. They can literally bring themselves back to life."

"Ah, the Master's immortal," Docherty deadpanned. "Wonderful."

"Not quite," Molly corrected. "Torchwood developed this," she gestured to the gun, "before the election. All you need is this gun and four chemicals. Cancels out a Time Lord's regeneration, kills him permanently."

"Four chemicals?" Tom repeated, looking puzzled. "You've only got three."

"That's why we're here," Greg told him. "To find the last one. They were scattered all over, see, to keep 'em safe. San Diego, Beijing, Budapest, and now London. That's why we've been traveling, to find them so we can stop the Master for good."

"So where is it?" Tom asked.

"An old UNIT base in northern London," Sherlock said. "We have the coordinates."

"Can you get us there, Tom?" Molly asked. The former doctor nodded automatically.

SCENEBREAK

"We can't get across London in the dark," Tom told them, "It's full of wild dogs. We'll get eaten alive. We can wait till the morning, then go with the medical convoy."

"You can spend the night here, if you like," Docherty offered.

Molly forced herself to keep a straight face as she said, "No thanks."

"We can get halfway, stay at the slave quarters in Bexley," Tom assured her. "Professor, thank you."

As they started to leave, the professor pulled Molly aside. She stared searchingly into the woman's eyes. "Molly, could you do it?" she asked seriously. "Could you actually kill him?"

Molly stared evenly back. "I'll do what I have to," she told the other woman coolly.

Docherty narrowed her eyes. "You might be many things, but you don't look like a killer to me." Molly shrugged and pushed past her, following her companions and Tom into the night.

SCENEBREAK

They traveled several hours before they finally reached the slave headquarters in the ruins of the city. They let the travelers in eagerly, staring with wide, hopeful eyes at the famous Molly Hooper and her Army, the trio destined to save the world, to save them all from this miserable hell. Molly felt a pang of guilt at each dirty, miserable, empty face that stared up at her. Somehow, she had to make this right.

Molly settled in, Sherlock and Greg at her side, with the entire slave headquarters sitting and eagerly watching. She took a deep breath, and like so many times before, plunged in to tell the familiar story. "The stories are true. Me, Sherlock, and Greg have traveled the world, from the ruins of New York, the smoldering ashes of Japan, right across the radiation pits of Europe. The world's gone to hell, and everywhere we went, we found people like you, huddled, scared masses, living as slaves on their own planet. But if Molly Hooper and her Army is the legend, that's not how it should be, because we don't matter. We aren't the ones who'll save you. Because there is a man. The one who sent us out here, who told us to walk the Earth, who told us how to defeat the Master."

"How to describe him? He's... he's like fire. And ice. And rage." She grinned fondly at the memory of him, of the friend who'd saved her from her own self-loathing two years ago. "He's like the night, and the storm in the heart of the sun." The listening people drank in every word, listening like children to the tale of this fairy tale man, this dark hero waiting to save them. "He is ancient and forever. He burns at the center of time and can see the turn of the universe." She fingered the miniature fob watch around her neck, remembering the man who had gave it to her and why. Remembering the time she'd kept a Time Lord safe for three straight months without any help or guidance. All the times she'd done great things, she, Molly Hooper, and she'd do it again now. She would save these people, and the Doctor too. "And... he's wonderful."

"He has saved your lives time and time again, and never been acknowledged, never seeked any fame or recognition, because he doesn't think he deserves it. But he does, because he's about to save you again." Molly was cut off by a sharp rap on the door. Everyone tensed as one, staring with terror at the front door. They started to panic.

"It's him! It's the Master!"

"But he never comes to Earth!"

"Hide them!"

"Use this!" Someone pulled out a blanket, and started to cover the travelers with it.

From outside, Molly could hear the Master's taunting call. "Molly. Molly Hooper. I can see you! Out you come, little girl, you and your schoolyard friends. Come and meet your master." A pause. "Anybody? Nobody? No? Nothing? Positions. I'll give the order unless you surrender. Ask yourself. What would the Doctor do?"

Molly looked from Greg to Sherlock, then nodded, letting them know it was time. The end had come. As one, they took off their TARDIS keys and pushed past the panicked crowd, heading outside. The slowly lifted their hands, staring coolly at the Master.

The Master grinned delightedly. "Oh, yes. Oh, very well done. Good girl. He trained you well." He turned his laser screwdriver suddenly on Greg. "Bag. Give me the bag." Greg took a step toward him. "No, stay there. Just throw it."

Glaring hatefully at the Master, Greg obeyed, kicking the bag towards the Master. The Time Lord zapped the bag, destroying the weapon. He grinned brightly, a cruel mockery of the Doctor's familiar expression, then turned to Molly. "And now, good companion, your work is done." Almost lazily, he lifted his screwdriver and pointed it at Molly."

A cry came from the slave headquarters. "No!" Tom rushed out to defend them. Before Molly could scream at him to go back, the Master turned and shot him. Molly watched as the kid crumpled to the ground, dead. There had been too much death, and she'd become far too used to it. No more.

The Master turned to her, thoughtful. "But you, when you die, the Doctor should be witness, hmm? Almost dawn, Molly, and planet Earth marches to war." His guards grabbed her and her companions, and shoved them along.

One way or another, this ended now.

Dun dun dun! So, this episode is nearly done. I hope you guys like where I take it.

Oh, and I hope you guys liked me sneaking in that quote from Family of Blood. Since Tim wasn't in my version of things, this quote never got said in my story, which I thought was a shame, since it's a brilliant quote and a great description of the Doctor. So I snuck it in, and I think it fits.

You lucky people, getting three chapters today. Tomorrow's where it all ends, though. I get the feeling the next chapter will be uber-long, so there's some consolation I guess.

BloodLily16(first message): Ha, yeah, don't blame ya. :)

BloodLily16(second message): It's a bright side if you don't want Molly beating herself up over a guy like that, even if he starts being nice to her, just doesn't feel the same way. This is about Molly, not Sherlock.