A/N I don't own DW or the BBC

Chapter 29

Donna rubbed at her eye, trying to get rid of that weird itchy feeling. Probably an eyelash.

"You alright?" River asked, coming up behind Donna with a concerned look on her face.

Donna shrugged, pulling her hand down. "Yeah, just got an eyelash in my eye. So what's this, uh…Maze of the Dead?"

"Oh, it's not as bad as it sounds. Basically just a big underground labyrinth with dead people buried in the walls," the archaeologist replied nonchalantly.

Donna swallowed. "Right."

"Can I see your arm?" Donna held out her arm without a second thought, and River pulled a big needle out of her pocket. "Now, this won't hurt a bit."

"Ow!"

"I lied. Rose! Come on, sweetie, you need one too!" River called to Rose, who dropped the Doctor's hand to walk back to River and Donna. The Doctor followed her.

"What's that?" he asked, cautious, "What're you injecting them with?" he sounded almost accusatory, but River just rolled her eyes and administered the shot to Rose, who flinched.

"It's a viro-stabiliser. Stabilizes your metabolism against radiation, drive burn, anything," she added to Donna and Rose, who nodded.

The Doctor looked sheepish. "Ah. Yes, sorry. Nice idea, thank you, River." He sort of hovered awkwardly in front of the woman, finally clapping his hands together and spinning around, marching forward, Rose following him with a torch and an eye roll.

Donna snickered. "Are they like that? In the future?"

River's own smile fell slightly, and she had to think for a moment. "Yes. They're the Doctor and Rose; they'll always be like that. Just not exactly…like that. It's hard to talk about, spoilers and all," she finished, waving her hand around. "But I can tell you –" she was cut off by the bang of a gunshot ringing out.

The Doctor stiffened and then ran off toward the sound, Rose's hand clasped in his, Donna and River on their heels. They ran down a flight of dilapidated stairs and soon found the source, which was in fact a boy, probably no older than 18, who looked pretty scared and ashamed. Father Octavian was giving him an angry lecture when they burst in, "…don't have time for this idiocy! You know what the Angel looks like. Did that look like the Angel?"

The boy bowed his head. "No sir. But I thought it looked at me, sir."

"Well man up! We haven't got time for cowards," Father Octavian growled, making anger flare up in Rose.

She dropped the Doctor's hands, putting hers on her hips like she had undoubtedly seen her mother do plenty of times. "Why've you got to talk to him like that?" she demanded, glaring at the bishop. "He's just a kid – course he's going to be scared! That's probably the only thing keepin' him alive! You're the idiot if you're not scared," she snapped. Then she turned to the boy and held out her hand. "I'm Rose. What's your name?"

The boy smiled slightly and shook her hand. "Bob, miss."

She frowned. "No, 's just Rose. Bob – I like that. Good name."

"We'll be moving into the maze in a few minutes," Father Octavian announced, obviously not happy with Rose. "You stay here," he told Bob, "with Christian and Angelo. Keep watch." And then the Bishop marched onward, torch held in front of him. He was barely out of earshot when Donna laughed, clapping Rose on the back.

"Oh that was rich. Did you see his face when you called him an idiot?" she asked, a huge grin on her face. "Shut him up like a clam."

Rose just smirked and the Doctor laughed, coming up and putting his arm over her shoulders. "You two…." He trailed off, as if he wasn't quite sure what they two were. He laughed again.

"Come on, you lot! We're going into the maze!" River called over her shoulder, already heading into the maze behind the bishop and his clerics. Donna turned and followed immediately; something just made her trust this woman without even questioning. Maybe they were best mates in the future and it just sort of fell back through the timeline, she thought with a shrug as she went into the maze. The Doctor and Rose followed, but only after Rose started following. The Doctor was a bit reluctant – he did hate not knowing something, and River Song was just one big unknown – but Rose seemed to think it was alright, so he submitted, keeping his arm over her shoulders.

"This thing isn't going to cave in on us, is it?" Donna asked, only a bit nervously.

River waved it off. "Incredible builders, the Aplans. We're fine."

"I had dinner with the Chief Architect once," the Doctor told them, taking his arm off of his girlfriend's shoulders – he liked that, his girlfriend. Never had a girlfriend before. Lovers, wives, sure, but never a girlfriend. It was nice, he decided – to shine his electric torch up above them, making Rose gasp at the height of the ceilings. "Two heads are better than one," he mumbled after a moment, still looking at the ceiling. There were statues everywhere.

"You helped him?" Donna asked, shocked. "Isn't that a bit like cheating?"

"No! I meant that he had two heads. River, that book, at the end – what did it say?"

She rummaged in her pocket for a moment. "Umm, hang on just a moment."

"Read it to me."

There was the sound of shuffling pages and she must've found it, because she began to read: "What if we had ideas that could think for themselves? What if one day our dreams no longer needed us? When these things occur and are held to be true, the time will be upon us. The time of Angels."

The words sent shivers down Rose's spine, and she wrapped her arms around herself to make them disappear, looking around them at the walls with apprehension. She couldn't quite figure out what the words meant, but they were definitely unnerving, regardless of their meaning. After a few minutes of silence, Donna spoke. "How big is this place?"

"Six stories. The Aplans thought it represented the ascension of the soul," River informed her with a little smile. "But we've only got two more levels to go!"

The Doctor shined his torch around, grinning at the frankly brilliant architecture. "Lovely species, the Aplans. We should go and visit them sometime. Very relaxed, sort of cheerful. Well, that's having two heads, of course. You're never short of a snog with an extra head," he added with a wink at Rose, who rolled her eyes.

"When have you ever been short of a snog?" she asked incredulously. The man always seemed to be flirting with someone. Though, it'd just been with her recently. Thankfully.

He blew the air out through his lips, thinking it over. "Oh, well, I dunno. Didn't you ever notice me moping around after you?"

"Doctor," River interrupted, "There's something. I don't know what it is, but it's not….it's not right."

He brushed it aside. "Yes, yes, I know. Working on it. Course, then they passed laws against self-marriage. What's that all about? But I suppose that's the church for you. No offense, Bishop," he added when Rose elbowed him.

Donna frowned. "Doctor…the statues…why are there so many of them?"

"Art? Interior decorating? Time-wasting? How should I know? Honestly, you all act like I know everything," he said with a fake exasperated sigh.

"No, but Doctor, don't artists usually make stuff that looks like them?"

He shrugged, not really listening. "Yeah, I suppose so."

She paused for a moment. "Then how come the statues only have one head?"

Silence. And then understanding. "Nobody blink. Nobody move. I'm sorry, but I've made a terrible mistake," the Doctor said quietly, looking at the statues with wide eyes. "We're in terrible danger."

"Aren't we always?" River asked, sighing dramatically, though Rose could tell that she was afraid as well.

The Doctor took a slow step back, ignoring River. "Could everybody back up for me? All together – yes, that's it. Alright. Now, I want you all to switch off your torches." His hand reaches down and catches Rose's, holding it tightly as one by one, the lights go out. Until there's only one left. "I'm going to turn mine off," he began, "but only for a moment. Keep your eyes open." Darkness for a fraction of a second, but it was enough. Rose bit back a gasp and squeezed her Doctor's hand tighter, sure she was probably stopping blood flow.

"Oh my god," River breathed. The statues had moved.

"They're all Angels," Donna said, speaking what they were all thinking but no one had dared to say. "Every last one of these statues is an Angel."

The Doctor walked forward, shining his torch and keeping his eyes on everything. On every Angel.

"But…there was only one Angel, I swear!" River cried in distress.

"Maybe they didn't show up 'cause they don't really look like Angels?" Rose suggested, still keeping a tight hold on the Doctor's hand.

"Yeah. Their image is power," he mumbled absentmindedly, rubbing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. Then something hit him like a bolt of lightning. "Power….power! Power! Oh, they've been absorbing all that radiation from the drive burn! The crash of the Byzantium wasn't an accident – it was a rescue mission! A rescue mission for the Angels, who're now….waking up."

"We should get out then, yeah?" Donna asked, a bit nervously, "Like now?"

"Yeah," Rose agreed. "Think that might be a good idea. Doctor?"

He faltered and Father Octavian stole the moment, saying into his comm, "Angelo, Bob, Christian, come in please. I repeat, come in."

Silence.

And then, "It's Bob, sir. Sorry, sir." And everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Father Octavian smiled. "Bob! Are Angelo and Christian with you? The statues are active. I repeat, all of the statues are active."

"I know, sir. Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The Angels killed them."

The Doctor snatched the device. "Hello, Bob! It's the Doctor. Where are you?"

The Bishop looked indignant. "Excuse me, I was talking to my –"

"Shut up," Rose said, not even looking at him. He shut up.

"Just coming up now, sir. Is that Rose? Rose was nice."

Rose smiled and took the comm. "Yeah. Hello. You alright, Bob?"

There was a pause. "I…I'm not sure. I think so. I think I'm alright."

Her smile fell. "What's that mean? You think you're alright?" he didn't respond. "Bob…your friends, what did the Angel do to them?" she asked quietly, mistaking his silence for sorrow.

"Snapped their necks," he replied in a bright voice, one that could almost be described as chipper.

The Doctor frowned. "But that's not right. The Angels kill you kindly, by displacing you in time. They wouldn't just snap your neck….unless they needed…."

"Did you check for vital signs? We might be able to organize a rescue if there's any chance they're still alive," the bishop tried, though it was obviously futile.

Rose put a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry," she told him sincerely. "Bob, if you don't mind me asking, how did you escape them?"

"Oh, I didn't."

"But you're…"

"The Angels killed me. Snapped my neck as well. Wasn't painless, but it doesn't hurt now. Suppose that's good."

Rose's hands shook as she raised the comm to her mouth again. "How are you talking to me?" she asked in a voice that stuck to her throat and tongue on the way up.

"You're not talking to me. The Angel stripped my cerebral cortex from my body and re-animated a version of my consciousness to communicate with you. I'm sorry."

There was a clatter as the device fell from her fingers and hit the floor, wobbling about for a moment before it finally settled at their feet. Rose's hands were over her mouth and her eyes were wide and wet. She was shaking.

"Rose?"

She shook her head, not looking down at the comm. She didn't stop shaking her head, even when she started speaking. "I can't. I can't." she said, referring to the dead boy still calling her name. "I can't do it." Her cheeks were wet. How old had Bob been? 18? 19? 17?

The Doctor slowly crouched and picked up the device. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, "Rose is a bit…she's busy right now. When you said that you were coming up…?"

"The Angel, sir. Sorry for the confusion."

"Right," the Doctor said, standing again. He looked at the others. Donna had an arm around Rose, who was still crying, and River looked as though she wanted to help but didn't. The Bishop and his clerics were reacting much like Rose, but no tears. They'd probably been trained out of all their tears. "And ah, which Angel am I talking to? The one from the ship?"

"Yes, sir. And the other Angels are still restoring."

"Ah, so the Angel is not in the wreckage. Thank you." He turned to hand the comm to the Bishop, but he'd just left, River on his heels. The Doctor frowned and clipped it to his belt unhappily. He'd wanted to get the device as far away from his Rose as he could. "Rose," he said, looking at her with concern.

She sniffed. "Yeah. Yeah, 'm fine. Just shook me up a bit," she said, wiping her eyes. There was makeup smeared across her cheekbones now.

He pulled her into a hug. "I know. I know, love. I'm sorry, but we've got to go now."

"Yeah."

"Doctor?" Donna asked, sounding scared. His blood ran cold – were the Angels here already? But no. Donna was standing with her hand on the metal railing, and she wasn't moving. "Doctor, I'm stuck."

"What?" he asked, confused. "No you're not. Come on."

"I can't."

"Donna! You're being ridiculous!" he exclaimed, grabbing her other hand. "We've got to go – come on!"

"Look at my hand, dumbo! I can't move!" she hissed, still managing to sound like the typical condescending older sister even in her terror.

Rose frowned. "What's wrong with your hand, Donna? It's fine." The Doctor's flashlight was starting to flicker, and the Angels were surely the cause of it.

"Look at it! It's stone!" she insisted, looking at her arm – which was entirely flesh – in a disgusted sort of panic.

The Doctor groaned. "You looked into the eyes of the Angel, didn't you?" she whimpered and he grimaced. "No, it's just an illusion – your hand is not actually stone," he tried to explain, but she would have none of it.

"Look at it, ya space ninny!" She screeched, quieting when he hushed her, looking around them for Angels popping around corners. Nothing yet.

"Donna, there's nothing wrong with your hand. It's just skin, like normal," Rose told her. "If we don't get out of here, we're gonna die." Another flicker. A hand reached out from behind a crumbling wall. "Donna, we've got to go!"

"Go on," Donna said, her voice shaking slightly. "Everyone up there's gonna die without you, Doctor. So go on, get out of here."

The entire Angel was around the wall now. Stop blinking, stop blinking. "Oh, Donna, no," the Doctor groaned, twisting his hands in his hair. "The Angels have gotten into your head – they're messing with what you see! It's only an illusion!"

"No, Doctor. 'S no use lying to me now. Just go. Really. Go save all those people, then go back to the TARDIS and live happily ever after. Travel, get married, get thrown in jail, I don't care, just get out!"

The Doctor's voice was sad. "Oh, Donna Noble. I am so sorry."

Rose paled, looking at the Angels that were now barely two meters away. "What! We can't leave her!"

He blinked. "Oh, I'm not leaving you, Donna! No, I'm sorry about this." He bent down and put his mouth right by her hand, opening his jaw and…

"Ow!" she shrieked, jumping away from him, clutching her hand to her chest. "What the hell?!"

"See? Not stone."

"You bit me!" Donna cried, incredulous. "I'm gonna have a scar! Your bloody alien teeth are sharp! What d'you need teeth like that for? Rose, what's he use those sharp teeth for?" she asked, spinning on the blonde with an accusatory tone.

Rose blushed scarlet at the implications of Donna's words, but kept her gaze on the Angels behind them. "We need to get out!"

"Ah, right," the Doctor said. He reached down and took her hand, looking up into her eyes with a smile. "Run."

They ran back down the way they came, following where the Bishop, River, and the clerics had gone. They safely reached the tunnel in just moments, quick enough to hear the beginnings of a conversation: "Clerics, we're down to four men. Expect incoming."

"Yeah, that would be the Angels," the Doctor said, coming to rest just beside them. "They're coming. And they're draining all our power for themselves."

"We won't be able to see them," Rose pointed out and he smirked.

"Yes, that's why we've got to leave. Now, angels coming at us from all sides, no climbing gear to reach the Byzantium…."

"No pressure," River said, coming to stand by the Doctor, "But this is usually when you come up with a really great idea."

The lights went completely out for a moment, and when they came back on, the Angels were so close Rose could've reached out to touch one if she tried. "There's always a way out," the Doctor told them, closing his eyes to think. His words echoed out all around the cavern. There's always a way out. Always a way out. Always a way out. Always a…

"Sir?"

His eyes snapped open and he snatched up the comm. "Angels. How may I help you?"

"Is Rose there, sir? The Angels would like to tell her something."

The Doctor looked at her for a moment. "No. No, but you can tell me. What is it?"

"I'll tell you, sir. I won't mind telling you. I'm not sure it would've been right to tell Rose, though," Bob's voice came through. Except it wasn't Bob. "I died in fear."

"I'm sorry."

"Rose told me that my fear would keep me alive. But she was wrong. I died alone, afraid, and in pain. The Angels were very keen for her to know that. Suppose it's alright that I told you instead. They want to say that you always let people down when it matters most. All of you."

The Doctor's jaw clenched and he looked at Rose, who looked as though she'd just been given a blow to the stomach. A hundred blows. "I'm sorry you're dead, Bob," he said after a while. "But I can't change anything. And it wasn't Rose's fault you died. I think you know that." Not-Bob didn't answer. But that only served to back the Doctor up. "I'm so sorry. But I'll make them even sorrier."

"Sir? You're trapped and running out of power."

"Yeah. I'm trapped. But the Angels made a mistake, Bob."

"Sir?"

"Do you trust me?" he asked the small group of surviving people behind him. Rose nodded immediately, Donna just after her. Then River. Then several of the clerics.

"What are you going to do?" Father Octavian asked, eyeing the Doctor warily.

"Something stupid and incredibly dangerous," he replied, "When I do, I need you all to jump."

"Jump where?"

"Just jump." The Doctor pulled the gun from the holster on River's leg and held it up in the air with one hand, the comm in the other. "On my signal."

"What signal?" Rose asked, and he looked at her for a brief moment, showing her everything he felt – fear, adrenaline, guilt, sorrow, love – in that moment. In that moment, their thoughts were like one and she trusted him wholeheartedly.

"You won't miss it," he promised.

"Sir? What mistake did the Angels make?"

"Bob, we're about to leave," the Doctor said into the comm. "I can't tell you how, but we are leaving within moments. Is there anything you'd like to say before we go?"

There was a slight hesitation. "Good luck, sir. Can't say I'm not rooting for you, regardless of what the Angels tell me. Please, sir, don't tell Rose what I said. I don't think it would be much good for her to hear."

The Doctor swallowed thickly, but he did not look at Rose as he replied, "I won't."

"If you get out like you say you will….Amanda Drury. Could you tell her what's happened to me?"

"I will, Bob. I will find Amanda and tell her. It was an honor knowing you."

"And you as well, sir." Apause. "Would you like me to take a message to the Angels? Their mistake?"

"Tell them that there is one thing you should never put in a trap," he said into the comm, raising the gun again with a steady arm.

"And what's that, sir?"

"Me." And he fired the laser gun into the Byzantium above them, and the world went blue and black.

A/N Do the chapters still seem rushed? I've been working on it, but I feel almost like it's getting worse. Also, how long would y'all like this story to be? I've never done a re-write/fix-it before, so I'm still trying to figure it out, sorry :(