As soon as the Gravity Glove burst, Alex jumped as hard as she could. There was a quick moment of weightlessness before she felt herself being flipped in the air and landing, hard, on her back on something metal. She groaned in pain and suddenly felt someone slam down next to her.

The person swore under their breath. "Goddamn it," the Doctor groaned, his back aching. Alex felt a flash of heat race through her veins when she identified him. For some reason, hearing him curse was kind of hot.

Not that she cared or anything.

"Ally?" he called out as further bangs sounded out around them.

"Right here," Alex said. She reached out and ran a hand across his chest. She was pleasantly surprised to feel him shudder underneath her fingertips.

The Doctor involuntarily shuddered as she ran her hand across him. It felt really good, more than it should have. Before he could get really excited about it though, he reached out and touched her fingertips, making her stop. "Good," he answered, his voice slightly husky. He cleared his throat and resumed. "I wasn't sure what would happen to you."

Alex laughed lightly. "I seriously doubt you would do anything that would endanger me or anyone else here."

She couldn't see it but the Doctor's face hardened. "Don't make assumptions, Alex," he told her.

Alex wondered what he meant but pushed it aside. "You feeling okay?" she asked, remembering his bang right next to her.

The Doctor groaned and grimaced. "Right as rain," he sarcastically remarked. "Remind me to get a chiropractor when we're done here."

Alex giggled slightly but before she could continue, River's voice rang out. "Would you lovebirds cease and desist for a moment, please? There are still Angels out there!"

Alex resisted the urge to groan because she knew River was right. Flirting with the Doctor wouldn't help stop a Weeping Angel. She sat up and grimaced as her back muscles screamed in protest. The Doctor, who had managed to get up already, pulled her up and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to steer her wherever he went.

"Up," the Doctor urged everyone as they struggled to their feet. "Look up!"

"You okay?" River called to Amy.

"What happened?" Amy asked as River helped her up.

"We jumped," River answered, staring at her as though this was obvious, which it was.

Amy looked down at the metal ground she was standing on and then at the lights surrounding them in a circle, allowing for very dim light. "Jumped where?"

"Up, up!" the Doctor ordered. "Look up!"

"Where are we?" Amy tried again.

"Exactly where we were," River explained as she looked upwards in fascination.

"No, we're not!" Amy argued.

Well, she is right. Alex reluctantly moved out of the Doctor's grasp and over to the side of her friend, who was clearly starting to panic.

The Doctor came up to them, waving the sonic screwdriver around. "Move your feet," he ordered Amy. Amy obliged, moving off of the metal circle and looking out into the dim light. She looked up and Alex saw her eyes widen.

"Doctor, what am I looking at?" Amy asked shrilly. "Explain!"

"Oh, come on, Amy, think!" the Doctor grinned, standing up and on the other side of Amy. "The ship crashed with the power still on, yeah? So what else would still be on?"

"The artificial gravity," Alex realized. She stared up at the Angels. "One good jump and up we fell!"

The Doctor bent back down to work on the metal circle but added, "Shot out the Grav Glove to give us an updraft and here we are!"

"Doctor!" Octavian called as he stared up at the Angels. Alex followed his gaze. Above them - or beneath them, depending on your viewpoint - the Angels had their arms raised upwards and they looked much stronger than they had been previously. "The statues, they look more like Angels now."

"They're feeding on the radiation from the wreckage," Alex figured out. "Draining all the power from the ship, restoring themselves."

"Within an hour, they'll be an army," the Doctor finished, not even looking up from his work on the metal circle.

Suddenly, the lights on the ship began blowing out. At the same time, the Doctor managed to get the metal circle open, revealing that it was actually a hatch. "They're taking out the lights," Alex reported, moving to the Doctor's side as she spoke.

"Look at them," the Doctor instructed her and the group. He pointed up to the Angels with his sonic. "Look at the Angels!" Everyone followed this order as the Doctor sat on the edge of the hole.

"Into the ship now, quickly!" he commanded. "All of you!" With this final thought ringing in everyone's ears, he jumped down the hole.

"But how?" Amy asked, turning just in time to see him jump in. "Doctor!" she cried, alarmed.

Alex and Amy knelt down next to the hatch and peered in. They were shocked to see the Doctor calmly standing inside the ship . . . sideways. The girls gaped as the Doctor called up to them, "It's just a corridor. The gravity orientates to the floor. Now, in here, all of you. Don't take your eyes off the Angels! Move, move, move!"

Amy stood back to allow Alex to go first. Hesitating slightly, Alex took a deep breath and dove down. Unfortunately, she didn't judge the gravity properly. Alex resigned herself to landing painfully again but was pleasantly surprised when she landed in the Doctor's arms instead. He was holding her bridal style and Alex subconsciously shifted closer to him.

He smirked down at her. "Really, I JUST told you about the gravity and you nearly land on your head!"

"What can I say? I'm a klutz," Alex joked.

River and Amy hopped in behind them. "Never a truer word spoken," River commented. Alex glared slightly at River, but was pleased that River seemed to at least tolerate her. She wondered how and why they didn't like each-other that much but since River was her future, Alex was sure she'd find out eventually.

Meanwhile, Amy watched as the Doctor continued to hold Alex in his arms, even though he didn't have a valid reason for doing so anymore. Alex didn't seem to mind; in fact, she seemed to be enjoying herself. Amy noticed how Alex's eyes sparkled whenever she looked into the Doctor's eyes and vice-versa. She also noted that Alex seemed to fit in the Doctor's arms perfectly, like he had been built for her specifically. It was so weird and so cute at the same time. Amy had never seen anything like it.

As she was taking all this in, River was giving the Doctor and Alex a pointed look. "Hate to ruin the moment, but there are Weeping Angels outside, Doctor," she reminded him.

The Doctor blushed slightly. He had been so caught up in holding Alex that any and all thoughts of present danger had completely left his mind. "Yes, right!" he said loudly. Reluctantly, he placed Alex back down on the ground just as Father Octavian called out, "Okay, men. Go, go, go!" The clerics jumped in, followed by Octavian.

The Doctor hurried over to a control panel, Alex following him. He pulled out the sonic and quickly scanned it over the panel before looking at the results. "The Angels," Octavian called to them. "Presumably they can jump, too?" Behind him, the door shut, allowing Alex to breathe a little easier, knowing that it'd be a bit harder now for the Angels to get in.

"They're here," the Doctor announced. "Now. In the dark, we're finished."

As he spoke, Alex took in her surroundings. They were currently in a corridor, just like the Doctor had said, with a silver floor and glowing blue and silver walls. The corridor was rounded and ahead of them was a large spherical door . . . which was beginning to close.

Alex's eyes widened. "Doctor! The door!" she shouted. The Doctor followed her gaze and ran towards it. Around them, an alarm sounded and just as he reached the door, it closed, keeping them locked in the corridor.

"This whole place is a death trap!" Octavian shouted, frustrated, when he reached the door along with River, Amy, and Alex.

"No, it's a time bomb," the Doctor corrected. He turned to a control panel next to the door and scanned it with the sonic. "Well, it's a death trap and a time bomb. And now it's a dead end. Nobody panic."

Easy for you to say! Alex thought, but she quickly reprimanded herself. For all she knew, the Doctor was just as apprehensive and nervous as she was.

A slamming from the door behind them caught everyone's attention. Alex tensed up and moved closer to the Doctor's side. He reached down and gripped her hand tightly and she could feel the beads of nervous sweat forming in his palm.

"Oh, just me then," he joked. Still holding Alex's hand, he turned back to the closed door. "What's through here?"

"Secondary flight deck," River replied. As she said this, the pounding on the other door increased and the lights above them flickered, threatening to go out at any second.

"Okay, so we've basically run up the inside of a chimney, yeah?" Amy guessed, still caught up on how they had actually entered the Byzantium. She suddenly looked worried and watched for a second as River opened another panel along the wall. "So what if the gravity fails?" she nervously asked the Doctor.

"I've thought about that," he replied calmly.

Alex looked at him hopefully. "And?"

"And we'll all plunge to our deaths," he blurted, glancing between the girls. He smiled at them, but he knew it wouldn't do any good on them. "See? I've thought about it!"

"Wonderful," Alex muttered as he turned back to the door.

But the Doctor was too busy to hear her cynical comment. He studied the panel critically. "The security protocols are still live," he revealed. "There's no way to override them. It's impossible."

River raised an eyebrow, not even looking away from her panel. "How impossible?" she inquired.

"Two minutes," the Doctor promised, not missing a beat.

The lights flickered again and a distinct hum was heard, indicating that the ship was powering down. "The hull is breached," Octavian said, staring at the now open outer hatch. "And the power's failing."

The room went dark and Alex hastily reached out for Amy. She managed to find her and yanked her close. The lights switched back on for a moment, revealing an Angel's arm outside the hatch. "Sir, incoming!" Marco warned.

"Doctor?" Amy called out. "Lights!"

Alex heard the sonic whirl up, trying to make the lights come back on. However, it was failing, leaving them with more darkness than light. Alex's eyes widened as she saw an Angel leaning through the open hatch. A second later, the lights came on halfway, revealing that the group was trapped in the corridor with four Weeping Angels, the hatch behind them now closed.

"Clerics, keep watching them!" Octavian ordered. Alex felt slight despair sink into her body. There were only four clerics left. Four clerics against an army of Weeping Angels. . . Even Alex was forced to admit that those weren't good odds. But the Doctor, who was definitely worth more than a bunch of clerics, would think of something. He just had to!

"And don't look in their eyes," the Doctor added. He was currently keeping the lights on so that the Angels couldn't move. "Anywhere else, not the eyes. I've isolated the lighting grid. They can't drain the power now."

"Good work, Doctor," Octavian praised.

"Yes. Good, good, good," he spoke quickly. "Good in many ways. Good you like it so far." Alex frowned. She knew that when the Doctor started rambling like this, there was a catch to the currently good news.

"So far?" she questioned. Glancing over, she noticed Amy had fear in her eyes. She hugged Amy slightly, letting her know she was there.

The Doctor was now at the panel he had been working on previously. "Well, there's only one way to open this door," he explained, yanking out a bunch of wires and messing with them. "I guess I'll need to route all the power in this section through the door control."

"Good. Fine," Octavian approved. "Do it."

The Doctor paced over to them. He grabbed Alex's wrist, pulling her away from Amy so that she could accompany him. "Including the lights," he revealed. All eyes - other than the clerics - shot to him, completely shocked. "All of them. I'll need to turn out the lights."

"How long for?" Octavian hesitantly asked.

"Fraction of a second, maybe longer. Maybe quite a bit longer."

Let's hope that doesn't happen, Alex thought.

"Maybe?" Octavian echoed, his voice filled with exasperation and frustration.

"I'm guessing," the Doctor admitted. He walked back to the door, dragging Alex along with him. "We're being attacked by statues in a crashed ship - there isn't a manual for this!"

"Like you would even follow it if there was one," Alex cheekily remarked. Well, at least my wit hasn't left me!

The Doctor shot her a quick look before turning back to the panel and examining it with his sonic. Amy marched up behind them. "Doctor, we lost the torches," she reminded him. "We'll be in total darkness!"

"No other way," he said grimly. He turned to look at Octavian for approval of this insane plan. "Bishop?"

Octavian turned to River. "Dr. Song," he called. River whirled around from the panel she had been working on for the past few minutes to face him. "I've lost good clerics today," he said. He nodded to the Doctor. "You trust this man?"

"I absolutely trust him," she replied with no hesitation, looking Octavian straight in the eye.

Octavian looked at her skeptically. "He's not some kind of madman then?"

This time, River faltered for a second and Alex couldn't blame her; it was technically the truth. But a split second later, she answered, even more firmly than she had been last time, "I absolutely trust him." There was a pause and then she added, to the surprise of everyone, "Alex as well."

The Doctor excused himself from them, heading back to the door. He was still dragging Alex along with him. Not that she really minded. Once they had stopped and the Doctor was working on the panel again, Alex glanced over her shoulder to see Octavian and River having another private conversation. She strained to hear them, but she was too far away. However, based on the look on River's face, she concluded that River was not happy about something Octavian had said.

What does he have on her? Alex wondered. She's in prison - that much I know - but what for?

Sighing, Alex turned back to the Doctor. It was highly doubtful she was going to gain answers from River, so she would have to wait awhile longer. River was her future after all; the truth would be revealed eventually. She was suddenly drawn to look back at River and Octavian again as the latter declared, "Okay, Doctor, Alex. We've got your backs."

"Bless you, Bishop!" the Doctor thanked, now working on the wheel attached to the door.

Alex watched as Octavian stepped behind his men and prepared them. "Combat distance, ten feet," he ordered. "As soon as the lights go down, continuous fire. Full spread over the hostiles. Do not stop firing while the lights are out. Shot gun protocol. We don't have bullets to waste."

"Alex, Amy," the Doctor said, attracting their attention. "When the lights go down, the wheel should release. Amy, spin it clockwise, four turns."

"Ten," the girls replied. The Doctor frowned at them.

"No, four," he corrected. "Four turns."

Amy and Alex looked at him strangely. "Yeah, four. We heard you," Amy said, frowning at him before taking position by the wheel. The Doctor turned back to the panel of wires but could distinctly sense Alex right behind him.

"What do you need me to do?" she asked.

"Make sure everyone gets out of here before me," he instructed. Alex opened her mouth to argue, but the Doctor, sensing this, beat her to it. "No arguing, Alexandria. Just do it."

Frowning slightly at the use of her full first name, Alex sighed and nodded before going to stand beside Amy. She eyed the Weeping Angels and swallowed thickly. While she wasn't scared of the Weeping Angels themselves, she did fear what they could do to others if they ever fully regained their strength.

"Ready!" the Doctor called out. He stuck the sonic screwdriver into the panel. A hum resonated throughout the room along with another much louder hum that signaled that the power was running. Even though she knew it was coming, the lights suddenly switching off still startled Alex a little. The clerics began firing, the bullets ricocheting off the statues. Every few seconds, a muzzle flash would light the Angels up, exposing them and revealing that they were moving closer and closer to the group.

"Turn!" the Doctor shouted to Amy. His voice sounded much more far away in the dark.

Amy obeyed and when the door began to open, shouted, "Doctor, its opening! It's working!" The door soon opened and Alex could faintly make out River rushing through, followed by Amy.

"Fall back!" the Doctor ordered the clerics.

The clerics, walking backwards, passed through the narrow gap along with Octavian. Alex suddenly felt herself being pushed through, landing on the floor with a thump. She growled, ready to snap at the person who did that - a small part of her believed it to be River, though she knew it was impossible - before she was suddenly picked up and thrown over someone's shoulder. She smirked slightly, still a little mad, when she recognized that familiar shoulder. She had been slung over it before.

"Doctor," she said faux sweetly as he began to run down the corridor to another cordoned door. "What was that shove for?"

"I knew you wouldn't leave before me," the Doctor revealed. She could practically feel the self-satisfied grin on his face. "Figured I'd take matters into my own hands."

Damn right, you did! Alex thought, feeling the Doctor's arm wrapped around her waist. It was too bad she had chosen to wear a t-shirt dress today. Actual contact with her skin would have been incredible. Oh, shut up, Alex.

Once they had reached the end of the corridor, the Doctor placed Alex back on the ground, neither of them knowing that the other's ears were ringing from the close contact in an adrenaline-packed experience. The Doctor swiftly opened the door with the sonic and once again, Alex made sure everyone went through the door.

She dashed through the door, not desiring to be shoved to the floor again, and looked at the Doctor, who was still standing there holding the sonic to the panel. "Doctor!" she called.

"Doctor, quickly!" River shouted.

"Doctor!" Amy cried, echoing Alex.

The Doctor removed the sonic from the panel and ducked inside at the last second, the door closing behind him. He tugged Alex to his side and led her to the controls in the center of the room. As he began to examine them, Alex studied her new surroundings. They were in the secondary flight deck, which contained light blue walls and simple flooring. In the center of the room was a circle of controls with a few chairs scattered around.

Alex started to lean over the Doctor's shoulder to see what he was doing when she heard a huge THUNK. The Doctor's shoulders tensed up and he reached behind him to grab her wrist, ready to run with her if worst came to worst. The two turned to see the wheel on the door turning, the Angels trying to get inside.

"Doctor!" Amy cried, trying to get his attention, which wasn't really necessary.

The group watched as Octavian removed something from his belt and attached it to the door. "What are you doing?" Amy demanded.

"Magnetized the door," he answered. He smiled confidently. "Nothing could turn that door now."

The Doctor turned back to the controls, but glanced at Octavian with an all-knowing smirk on his face. "Yeah?" he asked, expressing doubt.

Right on cue, the wheel began turning again and Octavian's face fell. "Dear God!" he breathed, his face etched in shock.

The Doctor laughed sarcastically. "Now you're getting it!" he grinned, turning to another section of the controls. "You've bought us some time though, that's good. I am good with time."

"Doctor," Amy warned as a wheel on another door on the right of the main one began to turn.

"Seal that door!" Octavian ordered. "Seal it now!" Marco hastily magnetized the door and pointed his gun at it.

"We're surrounded," River observed, who was now helping the Doctor with the controls. The wheel to the door on the left of the main one began to turn.

"Seal it!" Octavian snapped. "Seal that door!" Once the door was magnetized, he asked, "Doctor, how long have we got?"

The Doctor shrugged, not moving his eyes away from his work. "Five minutes, max," he guessed.

"Nine," Amy and Alex said. The Doctor stopped working and raised his head to frown at them.

"Five," he corrected, eyeing them for a moment before turning back to the panel.

"Five, right, yeah," Alex said. She stared at him. What was he talking about?

"Why'd you two say 'nine'?" he asked her.

"We didn't!" Amy argued. Honestly, why was the Doctor choosing now of all times to put words in their mouths?

"We need another way out of here," River pointed out, changing the subject.

"There isn't one," Octavian argued.

"Yeah, there is," the Doctor corrected. He released Alex's wrist and began to pace outside the controls. "'Course there is. This is a galaxy class ship, goes for years between planet-falls. So what do they need?"

Alex thought about this. Well, other than food or water, oxygen. But where would they get a never-ending supply of oxygen on a spaceship? She briefly wondered if there was an air-shell like on the TARDIS when she heard River gasp, "Of course."

"Of course what?" Alex questioned, feeling that burn of jealousy rise in her stomach again.

"What do they need?" Amy demanded.

"Can we get in there?" Octavian wondered. Alex frowned. What the hell was this thing everyone knew about but her? It drove her crazy when she didn't know something.

"Well," the Doctor drug out, "it's a sealed unit but they must have installed it somehow." He shoved himself against the wall directly across from the doors and began feeling around it. "This whole wall should slide up." He looked down and cheered. "There's clamps! Release the clamps!"

Amy and Alex watched him, astonished, as the Doctor began shoving the boxes that were blocking the clamps out of the way. As soon as they were all clear, he knelt down and used the sonic on the clamps.

"What's through there?" Amy asked, watching him. "What do they need?"

"They need to breathe," River spoke up, confirming Alex's theory. The Doctor finished with the clamps and stood back as the door rose. When it stopped, Amy and Alex's eyes were wide, both of them in astonishment at what lay ahead.

"But that's. . ." Amy's voice trailed off as she continued to stare at the sight before her. Alex was currently incapable of saying anything, a first for her. "That's a. . ."

"It's an oxygen factory," River explained.

"It's a forest," Amy blurted.

"Yeah, it's a forest," River agreed, nodding. "It's an oxygen factory."

Amy was right. It was a freaking forest. Out through the door, Alex could see hundreds of trees in a setting that reminded her of nightfall in Kentucky. It even smelled like a forest, all earth tumbled and woodsy.

"And if we're lucky, an escape route," the Doctor added. He glanced over and snorted at the girls' shell-shocked reactions.

That amusement quickly faded though when Amy and Alex suddenly said, "Eight." While the Doctor simply stared at them, River asked, "What did you say?"

The girls stared at her, confused. "Nothing," Alex replied, Amy nodding in agreement.

"Is there another exit?" the Doctor asked the clerics. "Scan the architecture! We don't have time to get lost in there."

Octavian rushed into the forest. "On it!" he called over his shoulder. "Stay where you are until I've checked the Rad levels."

"But trees?" Amy asked, heading over to the Doctor, Alex right behind her.

"On a spaceship?" Alex finished.

"Oh, more than trees," the Doctor grinned. He grabbed Alex's hand and tugged her over to one of the trees. "Way better than trees. You two are going to love this. This is brilliant! Tree-borgs!" With his free hand, he reached out and pulled part of the bark away from the tree. Inside were a few wires giving out a white glow. Alex felt her herself grinning as she gazed at it in wonder.

"Trees . . . plus technology," she breathed. She whirled around to face the Doctor. "That IS brilliant!" she cried. "How's it work?"

"Branches become cables, become sensors on the hull," the Doctor explained. He looked around in excitement, reminding Alex of a kid in a candy store. "A forest sucking in starlight, breathing out air! It even rains. There's a whole mini-climate! This vault is an eco-pod running right through the heart of the ship. A forest in a bottle on a spaceship in a maze." He turned to look at Alex and Amy, self-satisfaction as plain as day on his face. "Have I impressed you yet, Amy Pond, Alex Locke?"

Alex nodded excitedly and Amy giggled before they both said, "Seven."

"Seven?" the Doctor echoed. He headed towards Amy, pulling Alex alongside him. Once in front of Amy, the Doctor moved Alex so that she was standing right next to her.

"Sorry, what?" Amy asked, frowning, still oblivious to her and Alex's strange counting.

"You two said 'seven'," the Doctor reminded them.

Amy's frown only increased. "No, we didn't," she argued.

"Yes, you did!" River protested. She looked at the girls curiously. Why couldn't they remember counting?

"Doctor!" Octavian called, diverting the Doctor's attention away from Amy and Alex. "There's an exit, far end of the ship, into the primary flight deck."

The Doctor turned back to Amy and stared into her eyes as he answered, "Good. That's where we need to go."

Octavian tapped his device. "Plotting a safe path now," he assured them.

"Quick as you like!" the Doctor reminded him.

Alex frowned at him. "Don't be rude," she scolded.

The Doctor probably would have retorted had someone not chosen that moment to communicate with him. "Doctor?" Bob called out from the communicator. "Excuse me. Hello, Doctor? A-Angel Bob here, sir."

The Doctor reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the communicator. He sat down in the control chair while Amy leaned against the panel next to him and Alex stood by the chair. "Ah," the Doctor hummed into the communicator. "There you are, Angel Bob. How's life?" He snorted sarcastically, showing that he was being truly cut-throat and rude right now. "Sorry. . . Bad subject."

"The Angels are wondering what you hope to achieve," Bob replied.

"Achieve?" the Doctor repeated. "We're not achieving anything. We're just hanging. It's nice in here; consoles, comfy chairs, a forest. How're things with you?"

"The Angels are feasting, sir," Bob reported. "Soon we'll be able to absorb enough power to consume this vessel, this world, and all the stars and worlds beyond."

The Doctor didn't look very bothered by this. "Well, we've got comfy chairs, did I mention?"

"We have no need of comfy chairs."

The Doctor smirked at Amy and Alex. "I made him say 'comfy chairs'."

Amy laughed while Alex simply rolled her eyes. Suddenly, they both blurted out, "Six."

The Doctor shot to his feet and took a few steps forward. In the space of a second, he suddenly managed to look very threatening. "Okay, Bob, enough chitchat," he snapped into the communicator. "Here's what I want to know. What have you done to Amy and Alex?" Amy and Alex's eyes widened and they stared at the Doctor. What is he talking about? Alex wondered desperately.

"There's something in their eyes," Bob said cryptically.

"What's in their eyes?" the Doctor demanded.

"We are."

"What's he talking about?" Amy asked as the Doctor hurried over to them. "Doctor, I'm five!"

Alex stared at her, startled. "She means five," she corrected, but her eyes widened when she realized what she had said. She bit her lip nervously and looked into the Doctor's worried irises. "Fine!"

"We're fine," Amy insisted, but her voice was weak now that she had heard what she and Alex had been doing the past couple minutes.

"You're counting," River told them. The girls' eyes traveled towards her.

"Counting?" Alex repeated. She clutched onto Amy's arm and Amy huddled closer to her, both of them terrified.

"You're counting down from ten," the Doctor told them, trying to keep his voice low and soft so as not to scare them even more than they already were. "You have been for a couple minutes."

"Why?" Amy asked.

"I don't know," he admitted, peering closely into her eyes. He turned and did the same to Alex, making her flinch slightly and cast her now dull green eyes to the ground.

"Well, counting down to what?" Amy asked.

"I don't know," the Doctor confessed again. And it's driving me insane! He thought.

"We shall take them," Bob announced. "We desire Alex, but we shall also take all of you. We shall have dominion over all time and space."

The Doctor's face hardened at the mention of Alex being the object of the Angels desire and he clutched the communicator so hard, Amy thought it would break. He fell back into the chair and tugged Alex away from Amy, right onto his lap. Alex curled into his chest, gripping his jacket tightly in one hand. He had never seen her so frightened.

He spoke into the communicator. "Get a life, Bob," he quipped, hoping it would cause Alex to tell him to quit being rude. When she didn't say anything, he continued on. "Oops! Sorry, again. There's power on this ship but nowhere near that much."

"With respect, sir, there's more power on this ship than you yet understand."

Suddenly, a deafening and chilling screeching sound rang throughout the room. Alex jumped, nearly causing the Doctor to fall out of his chair. He wrapped an arm around her tense shoulders and she relaxed almost instantly. It seemed that he could calm her down the same way she calmed him down.

"What is that?" she whispered in his ear.

"Dear God, what is it?!" River shrieked.

"They're back," Octavian groaned.

"It's hard to put it in your words, Dr. Song," Bob admitted, "but as best as I understand it, the Angels are laughing."

"THAT'S laughing?" Alex wondered. The Doctor sighed in relief. It seemed she was coming back to him . . . er, them.

"Laughing?" he questioned into the communicator.

"Because you haven't noticed yet, sir, ma'am. The Doctor and his Ally in the TARDIS haven't noticed."

"Doctor—" Octavian started but the Doctor shushed him.

"No! Wait!" he commanded. He gently pushed Alex off him and sprang out of the chair. "There's something I've. . ." He sensed something behind him and glancing out of the corner of his eye, noticed Alex had too, based on the sudden look of realization on her face. Together, they turned around and looked at the wall behind them. ". . .missed," he finished.

On the wall before them, a huge shining crack grimaced down at them. Alex shuddered. It looked exactly like the crack she had seen so many times in Amy's room. She followed the Doctor around the console to look at it closer, Amy close behind them.

"That's. . . That's like the crack from my bedroom wall when I was a little girl," Amy breathed, unknowingly echoing Alex's thoughts. She stared at the crack in shock and disbelief. Around them, the room shook violently, causing them to stumble and trip.

"Okay, enough!" Octavian headed towards the forest. "We're moving out!"

"Agreed," River called. She looked at the Doctor worriedly. "Doctor?"

"Yeah, fine!" he dismissed before standing on top of a box and pulling the sonic screwdriver out.

"What are you doing?" Alex questioned. He wasn't seriously going to study a giant, creepy crack the Angels were so gleeful about right now . . . was he?

"Right with you!" he assured her, but as Alex expected, didn't move.

"We're not leaving you!" River told him. Alex nodded defiantly. Come hell or high water, nobody is getting me away from here without the Doctor, she decided.

"Oh, yes, you are!" he objected as the room started shaking again.

"Miss Pond, Miss Locke, Dr. Song, now!" Octavian shouted.

"Doctor, Alex, come on!" Amy begged them. She and River turned to run but Alex was still staying right by the Doctor's side.

He looked down at her. He was both impressed with her dedication to him and annoyed that she refused to follow orders . . . well, some of them anyway. "Go, Alex!" he commanded.

"Forget it," Alex snapped. "I'm not leaving."

"Alex!" River begged. God, she was even more stubborn now than she was later on!

"River, you should know as well as I do that I'm not leaving him," Alex remarked. River had to admit that she had a point.

"We don't have time for this!" Octavian growled. He made a move to grab Alex, but River yanked him back.

"Not a smart idea," she told him. "I saw Alex bite someone who did that to her." Alex cast her a look and the Doctor couldn't help but give a slightly puzzled frown even as he stared at the crack before him. Who the hell did Alex bite in the future? And more importantly, why?

Octavian was about to make a go for Alex again - even though River's cautionary advice was still ringing in his ears - when Alex suddenly let out a bloodcurdling scream and collapsed to the floor. The Doctor visibly started and looked over at her, alarmed. She seemed unconscious when her eyes suddenly sprang open. "What happened?" she asked weakly.

He looked over at River. "River, get her out of here!" he demanded.

Knowing better than to argue, River hastily tugged the girl to her feet and helped her out of the flight deck. For once, Alex didn't argue and regained her strength a few steps in, letting River release her.

A/N: Poor Alex! Hope she's going to be okay. . . :)

Notes on reviews. . .

ElysiumPhoenix - I know, I AM a tease with those two! They're just so cute and easy to mess with! :)

HopieCC - I love that line too. Alex gets some good ones, doesn't she? Glad you liked the forehead kiss. It seems like something the Doctor would do with Alex . . . a lot. :)

rycbar15 - SO glad you chose to follow this story! It means a lot! I'm glad you're looking forward to more River & Alex. Their interactions with each-other are so interesting and fun to write. Yeah, I've read a lot of Doctor/OC fics and I love them, but I wanted to make mine different. Is Alex human? I can't say! Other than her mind, she certainly seems human. We'll just have to wait and see!

setsuna1415 - I'm so happy you love this story! It means a lot to know people like my work!

Thank you to ElysiumPhoenix, HopieCC, rycbar15, and setsuna1415 for reviewing and thank you to those who followed/favored this story. Until tomorrow!