"So, you have been here for how long?" Octavius asked, accepting the capful of tea the old night guard made.
"About six years. I found this place after they all left. It was busted and broken, but I repaired it." Larry replied, tapping the ladle on the side of the pot. He took a deep breath of the tea and smiled. "And I found this stuff at the store just down the street. It was buried under some boxes. I guess that's the good thing about being the only one. Unlimited supplies."
"But are you not lonely?" Octavius questioned, taking a sip from his tiny, makeshift cup.
Larry sighed, and leaned against the stove, his own drink in hand. "It is lonely. It's very lonely."
They were silent for a moment, and then Octavius glanced at the pictures hanging above the stove, on the old, cracked wall. In one of them was the image of a young boy, little more than thirteen, wearing a shirt with a dinosaur on it. It said "Museum of Natural History". He knew who it was.
"What happened to Nicky?" He asked quietly, looking up at the night guard.
Larry sighed again, and a sad look crossed his face. He quickly hid it, and took a deep breath. "He's dead." He said simply, before turning back to the stove, hiding his face from the Roman. He took a few breaths, and then turned around again. "So what about you? Where've you been?"
Octavius paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "As you had been led to believe, I was indeed dead."
"Jedediah did kill you, then?"
"Yes. He did. It was not his fault, though. He had been possessed. But that does not matter. I was dead and in the Underworld. Kahmunrah was there. He was….well, I suppose, though that news is not something either of us wish to hear."
Larry nodded, and the Roman continued.
"I was his servant. But then something happened. There was this….thing. I do not know what it was. It called itself 'The Intelligence'. It could speak. And it could read thoughts. It knew I wanted to go home. It told me that if I never told anyone of its existence then he would send me home…. But I guess he was lying."
The night guard frowned, and gently picked up the Roman, whose head was bowed. "But it's the museum…."
'It is not my home. This world, this….this place. It should not exist. You should not exist."
"I shouldn't?"
"No. You should not. This was never supposed to happen. We were never supposed to be here." Octavius turned to look through a nearby window, and pointed. "You see that, there?" He said, pointing to something in the distance. Larry nodded. "That is the remains of a Dalek. Were they what invaded?"
Larry nodded again, and moved closer to the window to see. "Yeah. It was."
"You said Kahmunrah brought an army with him. And he has been working with the Intelligence. What if…." His eyes brightened, and a curious look appeared on his face. "What if it was the Intelligence who gave Kahmunrah the Daleks….. What year is it?"
"2020."
"And what year did Kahmunrah attack you?"
"2015….." A look of realization appeared on Larry's face, and he looked down at the Roman in astonishment. "That's the same year you first left with the Doctor. But I thought you stopped him…."
"So did I. But I think some survived. The Daleks retreated, remember? And Kahmunrah swore he would be back for Jedediah. When I died I thought he was fulfilled, and maybe he would leave him alone. But he must not have been."
"I'm sorry, but I don't see where you're going with this."
The Roman sighed, and tried to explain it a different way. "2014 the Doctor comes. He takes Jedediah and I away. A few days later the Daleks invade. 2015 the Doctor takes us again. We do not return. While I was in the Underworld I noticed a large quantity of spirits coming in. More than usual. In the room which held the Intelligence, there were hundreds of spirits trapped within him. The year now is 2020. In your mind, I have been dead for six years, when in reality I have been dead for seven. All this happened when I was absent. Meaning,"
"There was no one here to stop them," Larry said, realization on his face. "If you were already dead then it would make sense for Kahmunrah to start searching for Jed. Since this is the future it's already happened. But while you were in the Underworld,"
"It was in the process of happening." Octavius finished, turning away from the window. "Meaning we can go back and stop it."
"But how?" Larry asked, looking at his quizzically. "We don't have a time machine."
"No, but the Intelligence must have sent me through something. And that something, was probably in the tree."
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"How dare he," Kahmunrah said, his hand clenched into a fist on the arm of his chair. "No, how dare you!"
"Easy, pharaoh." The Intelligence said, its voice calm. "He is of no harm."
"No harm!?" The Egyptian rose to his feet, and walked right up to the clear sphere. "Do you know who he is?"
"Of course I do. I know all."
"Then you know how dangerous he is! If he finds a way to get back to our time-"
"He won't," The Intelligence said soothingly. "I have his time set."
Kahmunrah looked up. "Explain."
"I knew he would do this. I know his history. He will try to go back through the portal."
"And he will succeed."
"Maybe. But if he does, he'll end up years into the future, well out of our way." The Intelligence said.
"Yes, except the time you have set just happens to be the same time the cowboy lives!" Kahmunrah shouted, throwing his hands up. "You stupid foolish-"
"Let me finish. I know he'll end up there. He'll meet the cowboy and the blond girl. That's where the implant comes in."
"Implant?"
"Yes. Implant. I put a tracking device in him while he was going through the portal. It will lead us right to him, and ultimately, the cowboy."
"And then what?" Kahmunrah asked, crossing his arms. "We just scoot through time and pick them up? I hope you haven't forgotten the domination."
"I haven't. When it's time, the implant will dispose of him. The cowboy will stay with him despite the warnings from the others. We will catch him. We will catch her. We will free the Doctor. He will come for them. We dispose of the Time Lord, come back to the present year, and complete the domination without fear of being stopped."
"Good plan." Kahmunrah said, smiling. "I cannot wait to put in effect."