Yeh I know it looks like it's the same but something is added to the end. I wrote it and decided it was too short to be classed as a chapter so I added it onto here. Enjoy.
A Question Worth Answered
It was less than an hour later that the Doctor began to realise something was very not good. The Doctor had been trying to find a way to increase the speed of travel through the vortex. The idea was that he could break through one of the parallel walls throughout time. In theory, this would allow him to travel back through his own time stream without causing a Paradox because he would be too fast for the timelines to collide.
That was the theory at least. The practical however meant that if he tried to do this, he would cause a universal implosion the size of the Milky Way and it just so happened that the Milky Way was a galaxy that he happened to like.
It was only minutes later that the Doctor began feeling panic. His mind fluttered about trying to find the cause of the panic but he couldn't think of anything that would cause it.
There was no impending doom, the Earth wasn't overrun with aliens, the TARDIS wasn't exploding and Winter was still-
"Theta, there is something wrong. I cannot pick up Winter's life force anywhere." The Doctor froze in fear.
"No where? But that's not possible. She has to be somewhere; it's not possible for her to just disappear."
"I have checked everywhere," the TARDIS spoke. There was worry colouring her voice. "Winter isn't on the TARDIS. The last time I registered her life force was 15 minutes ago, anything after that and the only life form that registers is you."
The Doctor's hearts froze, there wasn't a possibility that Winter wasn't on the TARDIS, there just couldn't be. He ran to the Library and shoved the doors open. Sure enough, there was no sign of the girl. The Doctor ran through the shelves looking everywhere. He called to her on numerous occasions in the hope that she would answer him but she never did.
He wouldn't give up though. He ran back to the console and typed furiously at the keyboard setting the Locator to Winter's DNA hoping to find the one that matched his current Winter.
Every time he found one his heart fluttered with hope only to have it dashed again when it wasn't the right time period. But still he tried, again and again.
After hours of searching, he still could not find anything but the Doctor still refused to give up. He felt the TARDIS nudge his mind and he allowed her entrance. "Theta, there is another explanation," she began. He silently told her to continue and she did. "When you first found Winter she told you that she would never tell you where she had come from however I did not tell you either." She paused. "She confided in me, telling me that she had come from a point in your future."
"So you're saying," the Doctor began, "that this could be the timelines fixing themselves?"
"It is possible yes." The TARDIS told him. The Doctor slumped down against the console. If that were true, it meant that this was supposed to happen – and he supposed it was. When he had first met Winter, she had introduced herself as such. She had also known him from before. The Doctor remembered the annoying catch phrase she had always told him.
'Spoilers.'
If that was the case, he now had to wait until she found him again. He groaned in annoyance. "Be patient dear Theta. You will find her again."
And so the Doctor was patient. He waited, going on adventures and saving the world many times in the process but he missed her. He missed her voice and the things she said, he missed her wit and her intelligence but above all, he missed how she could smile and it would calm him in an instant.
Still, he carried on as he did and along the way, he met the brilliant Amy Pond.
It was odd how alike the circumstances of their meeting was and that crack was on Amy's wall as it had been Winter's but instead of there being a prisoner this time, there was only silence. An unnatural amount.
The Doctor proceeded to make her his companion but so far they had only gone on one trip. To WWII.
It had not gone well.
The Doctor had once again met the Daleks. He managed to defeat them but still, he had wished Winter was there to stop the overflowing anger that had been coursing through him throughout that whole trip.
When they returned, Amy asked about them but he couldn't answer. He was reluctant to share and when Amy sensed that, she eventually let it go but she couldn't help wanting the Doctor to talk to her about it.
It was some time after their adventure when something happened that scared Amy much more than she had been before.
She had been sitting on the seats, the Doctor telling her about the amazing planets that he was going to take her to see. They had been laughing and joking about when suddenly the Doctor collapsed onto the floor gasping.
"Doctor!" Amy cried and ran over to him, kneeling down beside him. "What's wrong?" She asked.
"Winter." He gasped and Amy found herself confused. What did a season have anything to do with this?
"What do you need? What can I do?" Amy found herself panicking. He hands were moving over the Doctor's shaking body but not touching him; not knowing what to do.
He didn't answer, he couldn't. He was in too much pain. The Doctor's heart broke knowing why. Winter was suffering from the Bond. It was causing her pain not being physically near him and as an effect it, his Bond was rebounding and trying to absorb as much of the pain as he could so it would lessen it for her.
The Doctor closed his eyes and focused on her. Trying to breathe as deeply as possible, he extended his Bond to wherever she was and wrapped it around her Psyche.
Winter's exposure to the TARDIS had left her with a higher psychic mentality meaning it allowed him to find her and use his to take away as much pain as he could. He hoped that if the Bond felt some of his Psyche then it would consider this part of him and recoil.
He focused more intently and found it working. He continued doing this until he felt no more pain and he opened his eyes. In front of him was Amy, worry and fear filled hers as he looked at her before groaning and getting up.
"What was that? What happened to you?" She asked, the worry in her eyes colouring her tone.
"Someone I care deeply about is in pain." He answered quietly but still Amy heard and persisted.
"Are we going to help them?" She asked.
"No." Soon enough Winter would find his last regeneration and then the Bond would quieten down a little bit. Whether or not the pain would go completely was another matter but he hoped that is would at least become manageable. Wherever you are Winter I am so, so sorry.
[][][]
Winter watched as the Timelord bounced around the TARDIS console. She was so unused to this version of him but at the same time, he had the same gleam and childlike glee about him that Winter just had to smile at his antics.
Still, she forever found herself tracing over the tattoos on her wrist, hoping that she would be able to return soon.
They had managed to get the TARDIS back eventually, though Winter had felt how furious she had been at them. When she entered she almost gasped aloud; she was not the same TARDIS but it didn't matter too much, she could still feel her consciousness, still talk to the machine.
When she had first entered, she begged the TARDIS to keep her secret. The Doctor couldn't know what it was she was becoming, at least, not yet. The TARDIS agreed on the condition that she would help heal him and Winter gladly agreed.
And so, it was because of this that Winter was watching as he and Martha conversed like best friends while a part of her cried because it was no longer her that the Doctor would confide in.
It seemed like this Doctor was too busy trying to get her to tell him just how she managed to throw him across the room without even touching him.
"So where are we going now?" Martha asked, "And if we get stuck somewhere else I will kill you."
"Cardiff." The Doctor said pulling some levers getting ready to leave.
"Cardiff?" Martha asked. She was obviously unimpressed with the destination and Winter could understand why in a way. There was nothing remotely special about Cardiff if you had a time machine. Well, that was if you didn't know what it was.
"Cardiff was built on a rift in time and space." Winter told her before the Doctor could. "Because of this, things escape all the time and come here to Earth. It's almost like a plug hole if you will. It also happens to bleed energy, energy that's compatible with the TARDIS so she soaks it up and uses it as fuel." Martha looked at her and Winter smiled.
"How do you know that?" The Doctor asked somewhat shocked at the girls knowledge.
Winter shrugged, "I know stuff." There was a pause where the Doctor continued to look at her but Winter said nothing else to clarify the matter.
"Wait a minute," Martha said interrupting the Doctor's stare. "They had an earthquake in Cardiff a couple of years ago. Was that you?"
"Bit of trouble with the Slitheen." The Doctor told her, once again pulling levers. "A long time ago. Lifetimes. I was a different man back then." He glanced at the screen and noticed a man with a black rucksack running towards the TARDIS.
"I bet you were," Winter murmured. It was then that she noticed the man as well. It seemed like he was running to the TARDIS but if that was the case, the Doctor wouldn't be trying to get away as quickly as possible unless…I wonder if this is Jack. She thought.
"Finito. All powered up." He said. Suddenly there was a bang outside the door. When Winter looked at the screen she no longer saw the man. Yep, it's probably Jack.
"Whoa! What's that?" Martha asked. Someone clinging to the outside of a ship travelling through the Vortex. This is not going to end well, Winter thought as she held on the one of the railings surrounding the ship.
"We're accelerating into the future." The doctor exclaimed, looking at the screen. "The year one billion. Five billion. Five trillion. Fifty trillion? What? The year one hundred trillion? That's impossible."
Winter gaped while Martha stared at the doctor in confusion. "Why? What happens then?" She shouted over the noise.
"It's the end of the universe." Shit. This really isn't going to end well.
[][][]
Finally the TARDIS stopped shaking as an indication that they had landed. "Well, we've landed." The doctor stated. Winter rolled her eyes; it seemed this doctor had a pension for stating the obvious as well.
"Thank you Captain Obvious but what does that mean? What's out there?" Winter asked as she pulled herself to her feet as she had somehow managed to fall during the trip.
"I don't know."
"Say that again, that's rare." Martha teased.
"Not even the Timelords came this far. We should leave. We should go. We should really, really go." And Winter wholeheartedly agreed. She may not have known much about this particular adventure as her Doctor hadn't told her much but she knew that whatever bad happened, was not going to be good.
[][][]
Winter followed the two out the door worried about what was going to happen. If she wasn't careful, then it was possible that something could happen and she would change the time lines.
And then an idea occurred to her. If she was here now, that meant that when her Doctor met her, he already knew her because he had met her when he was 10. As confusing as it was, Winter couldn't help the small feeling of betrayal – even though she knew that he couldn't have told her.
"Oh my God!" She heard Martha screech and she ran for the girl. "Can't get a pulse. Hold on. You've got that medical kit thing." She ran into the TARDIS leaving Winter and the Doctor behind her, both looking at the body.
"Hello again. Oh, I'm sorry." She heard the Doctor murmur quietly. It's nice to finally meet you Jack. She thought to herself. She didn't even notice Martha return until she was standing next to Jack."Here we go. Get out of the way. It's a bit odd, though. Not very hundred trillion. That coat's more like World War Two."
"I think he came with us." The Doctor told her.
"How do you mean, from Earth?" Martha asked.
"Must have been clinging to the outside of the TARDIS all the way through the vortex. Well, that's very him." Winter scoffed at the remark he made and both the Doctor and Martha turned to her.
"I wonder what gave it away. Was it the TARDIS' warning? Oh I know, maybe it was the fact that you could see him clinging from the monitor!"
"What? You saw him?" She asked Winter completely disregarding the comment about the Doctor. Martha was sure that if the Doctor had seen him, he would have let him inside no doubt about it.
"Who is he anyway?"
"Friend of mine. Used to travel with me, back in the old days." There was hardly any emotion in his voice, Winter realised, and she wondered what had happened that had made the Doctor so…solemn.
"But he's. I'm sorry, there's no heartbeat. There's nothing. He's dead." She told him sadly. All of a sudden, Jack gasped and shot up, clutching on to Martha. "Oh, so much for me. It's all right. Just breathe deep. I've got you."
"Captain Jack Harkness. And who are you?" Winter giggled a little at his reaction but then gasped as a flash of light came in front of her and when it left, there stood a woman.
Winter couldn't see her face as her back was turned away from her and towards Jack, but she could see that her hands were on her hips. Winter could only guess that she was glaring at Jack.
"I cannot believe you just left like that! What the hell do you think would have happened if the team didn't know how to handle themselves? I mean, you just left! Without warning! You freaking dumbass!"
"Ari-"
"Don't Ari me! How could you think of leaving? I mean come on Jack I cannot believe you would just take off like this, I – where the hell are we?" Everyone seemed to be a little shocked at her sudden change of mood. Well, everyone except Winter. She was like that all the time, especially when she was tired and so, she answered.
"Apparently, were at the end of the Universe and some people," she motioned to the Doctor, "thought it would be a good idea to stay here." The woman turned and looked at Winter, and both of them gasped.
It was literally like looking in the mirror. Her lips were the same shape, just a shade darker than Winter's and her eyes were almost the exact shade of green as her. The only difference between the two of them were their hair styles. While both women had the exact same shade of hair, Winter's was tightly curled into ringlets, her purple streaks pulled back and the women's hair fell in soft waves.
"Who are you?" The two of them said together. Everyone was looking at them, not knowing how to respond. Martha was confused at the whole thing and what had just happened, the Doctor was looking at the similarities between the two, not knowing how it was possible, and Jack was looking at Ari, trying to determine what she was thinking.
It was Winter though who first snapped out of it and offered the woman her hand. "Winter Swann, well, it's Winter now but I used to go by a different name." The woman took Winter's had and shook it.
"Ariella Addams, I go by my middle name, I really don't like my first one." Jack let out an involuntary snort and Ariella turned to glare at him before looking back at Winter. "But you can call me Ari."
Martha, not knowing what was happening still, decided to also introduce herself. "I'm Martha Jones." She told Ari. Ari looked at her and smiled politely, but her gaze fell back to Winter very quickly.
"Nice to meet you, Martha Jones." Jack said from where he still was on the floor. Ari turned to glare back at him.
"Oh, don't start." She growled. Jack had the decency to look frightened at the glare but still had a comeback as was his usual fashion.
"I was only saying hello."
"Well I can 'only say hello' to him too if you'd like." She said pointing at the Doctor. It seemed Jack knew exactly what type of hello she was talking about and immediately jumped up and walked over to her.
"I don't think so," he said firmly. Ari was about to give a snarky remark when all of a sudden, she felt his lips on hers, bringing her into a firm but loving kiss. She couldn't help her reaction to the brunette and immediately kissed him back, melting into his embrace.
Winter smiled lightly at the couple. It was obvious they loved each other, so very obvious but it also made her heart ache for her Doctor. Wherever he is, I wish he knew that I love him. She closed her eyes, and tried to project the love she was feeling to him over the Bond.
[][][]
The Doctor was in the TARDIS trying to fix some of the wires he may have accidentally damaged when he had landed. Whilst he was doing that, Amy was pacing nervously. "Oh! The life out there, it dazzles. I mean, it blinds you to the things that are important. I've seen it devour relationships and plans..." There was a small explosion and Rory looked at it worriedly. "Ohhh! It's meant to do that...because for one person to have seen all that, to taste the glory and then go back, it WILL tear you apart. So...I'm sending you somewhere. Together." He told them happily.
"Whoa! What, like a date?" The Doctor looked up from his work and grinned at her like a small child.
"Anywhere you want, any time you want." He stopped working and walked up the steps to join the two of them. One condition - it has to be amazing. The Moulin Rouge in 1890! The first Olympic Games! Think of it as a wedding present, because, frankly, it's either this or tokens."
The Doctor looked at Rory noticing the expression on his face. Ahh it never gets old, he thought to himself. " It's a lot to take in, isn't it? Tiny box, huge room inside. What's that about? Let me explain."
"It's another dimension." Rory said.
"It's basically another dimen... What?"
"After Prisoner Zero, I've been reading up on all the latest scientific theories; FTL travel, parallel universes."
The Doctor pouted a little. "I like the bit when someone says, "It's bigger on the inside!" I always look forward to that." Only one other person didn't say that...And as if she had felt his sadness, the Doctor suddenly felt a wave of pure undivided love coming from the Bond.
It warmed his hearts, knowing that Winter was thinking about him, and if he remembered correctly, this would be around when she found out who she was. He wished he would be there for her in the sense that he was now; his tenth regeneration was still suspicious of her at this time, but Winter would need the emotional support that he just wasn't there to give at the moment.
Still, even through the sadness he felt for her, he still became noticeably happier as Amy asked, "so, this date. I'm kind of done with running down corridors. What do you think, Rory?"
"How about somewhere... romantic?"
[][][]
Winter had been listening to Jack and the Doctor for the last five minutes doing that awkward guy thing. Then suddenly, the conversation had changed to Rose.
Apparently, she had been the Doctor's first companion and it was obvious to the girl that she had been something more than just a companion, whether the Doctor had realised it or not - and if she were being truthful, she would say she was jealous of the feelings the two had together.
She began tracing the tattoo's again, only this time, Ari noticed. It was odd, she noticed. She seemed to have a strange connection with Winter, like something was telling her she had to look after her.
Now Ariella had never really been the caring type, with the exception of Jack, the team and her best friend Faith, but something was pulling her towards this girl and Ari wanted to find out what it was.
"Is that a city?" Martha asked. Winter snapped back to attention. Great, I seemed to have missed the entire conversation.
"A city or a hive, or a nest, or a conglomeration. Like it was grown. But look, there. That's like pathways, roads? Must have been some sort of life, long ago."
"Well there's nothing there now." Ari noted.
"What killed it?" Martha asked, staring at the site before her with a morbid curiosity. She had developed that in spades since she had began to travel with the Doctor.
"Time." Winter cut in softly. "Just time. Everything's dying now. All the great civilizations have gone."
The Doctor nodded slightly and added something. "This isn't just night. All the stars have burned up and faded away into nothing."
"They must have an atmospheric shell. We should be frozen to death." Jack said.
"Well, Martha and myself, Ariella and Winter, maybe. Not so sure about you, Jack." The Doctor told him truthfully.
"Oh no, not me, I'm like Jack; I can't die." Ari told them. She said it so casually that Winter didn't even realise what had been said until a minute later. She frowned, noting that Ari had said it rather absently, like she didn't even care.
"What do you mean you can't die?" The Doctor asked shocked. "There isn't anyone else like Jack, it's impossible. And even if you were like him, I would be able to tell." Ari rolled her eyes in annoyance and the man who Jack seemed to care for so much.
"I'm telling you I can't die. I don't know why - all I know is I woke up one day and I couldn't die." The Doctor's mouth was open and he looked so amazingly like a fish that Winter couldn't help but giggle softly.
"What about the people? Does no one survive?" It was a question that had popped into Martha's head as she had looked at the...building.
"I suppose we have to hope life will find a way." The Doctor told her solemnly.
"Well, he's not doing too bad." They all looked at where he was pointing, and sure enough, there was a man running through the city being chased by what appeared to be humans
"Is it me, or does that look like a hunt? Come on!" They all began to run down after the man.
"Oh, I've missed this." Winter heard Jack laugh and she knew what he meant. Those moths she had been stuck in 1946 were the worst. She was so bored she wanted to rob a bank, but that would have been counterproductive to what she needed to do.
"I've got you." Jack told the man as he reached him.
"They're coming! They're coming!" Jack aimed a gun at the tribe and was about to shoot.
"Jack, don't you dare!" The Doctor shouted.
There was a sort of electronic noise and suddenly, some of the tribe in front collapsed to the ground. Everyone looked around to see what had caused it and they saw Ari with a small silver and blue gun in her hand, but it didn't look human made.
The Doctor frowned and when she saw it she rolled her eyes. "Relax man, it was a stun gun. They're still alive...unfortunately." Jack took the opportunity to fire the gun in the air - making the tribe stop on caution.
"What the hell are they?" Martha asked.
The only response the man gave was a scarred one. "There's more of them. We've got to keep going."
"I've got a ship nearby. It's safe. It's not far, it's over there." He pointed to where the TARDIS was and ironically, it was in the direction of where most of the tribesmen had gathered.
"Yeh, that probably isn't the best way to go," Winter said sarcastically. From the corner of her eye she saw Ari and Jack smile slightly and she felt her chest flutter slightly. Resisting the urge to frown at her odd reaction, Winter stored the piece of information away for when they weren't being chased by apparent cannibals.
"We're close to the silo. If we get to the silo, then we're safe." The man they had found said.
"Silo?" The Doctor asked.
"Silo." Jack and Ari agreed.
"Silo for me." Martha said. The Doctor didn't even ask Winter for her opinion and while she knew that he knew she would say yes, she couldn't help the feeling of betrayal flood through her. "It's the Futurekind! Open the gate!"
"Show me your teeth! Show me your teeth! Show me your teeth!" A guard exclaimed.
"Show them your teeth." The man told them and all six of them barred their teeth for the guard to see. Satisfied with what he saw, the guard allowed them access into the Silo before firing his gun in warning to the tribesmen.
The Chieftain of the tribe began growling. "Humans. Humani. Make feast."
Aiming his gun at them, the guard shouted, go back to where you came from. I said go back! Go back!"
"Oh, don't tell him to put down his gun." Jack said grinning slightly. Ari rolled her eyes and slapped the back of his head lightly which only succeeded in making his grin become bigger.
"He's not my responsibility." The Doctor told him somewhat moodily. Winter scoffed and rolled her eyes. If this was the Doctor's was of showing that he's responsible, maybe I shouldn't have tried to find him.
"Yeh but technically, he isn't your responsibility either Doctor, he's mine." Winter couldn't help smiling at Ari as she glared at Jack –who looked very worried, and worried he should be, though he didn't know why.
"Kind watch you. Kind hungry." The supposed chief of the tribe growled and Winter groaned in annoyance.
"Ahh go suck a lemon dude. We really don't want you here." She was met with growls but she only grinned at them. Then, she happened to notice the Doctor looking at her in a disapproving manner and she once again couldn't help but want her Doctor back.
Eventually, the chief took his tribe away and the Doctor looked towards the guard. "Thanks for that."
With only a nod, the guard turned around. "Right. Let's get you inside."
"My name is Padrafet Shafekane. Please tell me, can you take me to Utopia?" Ari cocked her head to the side in interest, honestly wondering what Padrafet had meant.
"Oh yes, sir." He said grinning. "Yes, I can."
[][][]
"It's a box, a big blue box. I'm sorry, but I really need it back. It's stuck out there." The Doctor insisted. They needed the TARDIS back if they ever wanted to leave and somehow, he just couldn't imagine Martha being too pleased at the prospect of being stuck somewhere. Again.
"I'm sorry, but my family were heading for the silo. Did they get here? My mother is Kistane Shafekane. My brother is Beltone." Seeing the worried look on the man's face, Atillo called for his assistant
"Right. What d'you need?" Creet asked. The women all looked at the boy who could be no more than eight years old, working. Padra however walked over to look at Creet's clipboard, trying to find his family.
"A blue box, you said." Atillo asked. The Doctor described the box to him again and Atillo nodded. "We're driving out for a last water collection. I'll see what I can do."
"Thank you."
Ari looked at the small child leading Padra through at door. She couldn't help but feel bad for him and she wondered if he had any family left. "Creet, where are your parents?" She asked before she could stop herself.
"They both died a while back. Now my aunt looks after me." Winter felt the crippling emotion travel through her; it was bad enough that he only had an aunt, but what was even worse, was that he didn't seem to feel anything about the loss of his parents.
Still, she followed the small boy with the others whilst he called for Padra's family. "Kistane Shafekane. Kistane Shafekane. Kistane and Beltone Shafekane? Looking for a Kistane and Beltone Shafekane."
They called fruitlessly for a few minutes, all the while, Winter wished there was something she could do to help them. Not just Padra and Creet, but the rest of the human race. It seemed like whoever had been able to survive the Future Kind had come here.
"It's like a refugee camp." Martha said, voicing Winter's thoughts to the rest of the group, but still, Winter couldn't help but agree to them all the same.
"Stinking." Jack said passing a large man who looked at him angrily. "Ooh, sorry. No offence." Ari rolled her eyes and slapped him on the back of the head roughly. "Ouch!" He cried rubbing his head.
"Quiet you idiot." She said still glaring. Jack only grinned at her and she rolled her eyes, annoyed at his behaviour.
"Don't you see that?" The Doctor asked smiling proudly. "The ripe old smell of humans. You survived. Oh, much better than a million years evolving into clouds of gas. And then another million as downloads, but you always revert back to the same basic shape. The fundamental humans."
Creet shouted out again for Padra's family but no answer came.
"End of the universe and here you are. Indomitable! That's the word! Indomitable! Ha!" As if to prove his point a woman shouted out to them and Padra rushed over to her, reunited with his family again. Everybody watched, happy that their new friend had found them.
"It's not all bad news." Martha grinned broadly at the scene and nobody could deny it.
[][][]
"Chan—welcome—tho."
The TARDIS had been found but while they had been waiting, apparently a professor of some kind had heard about the Doctor somehow and had gone to them, asking for his help. No-one knew what he wanted help with and Winter could only guess, but still they followed him through the countless halls and rooms until they had reached their destination.
"This is the gravitissimal accelerator. It's part of the …" The Professor trailed off into the background as the rest of them filed into the room one at a time.
"Chan—welcome—tho."
"Hello. Who are you?" Martha asked the blue alien. She - becasue her voice sounded feminine at least - smiled at her. Her clickers stretching slightly with the smile.
"Chan—Chantho—tho." The Professor kept talking to the Doctor in the background as the rest of them introduced themselves to Chantho. It included polite smiles and a very hard slap on the head for Jack, who had gone for his usual 'hello.'
"And all this feeds into the rocket?" The Doctor asked after listening to the rest of the group go through the introductions. It seemed that Professor Yana needed help to build some type of rocket.
"Yeah, except without a stable footprint we'll never achieve escape velocity. If only we could harmonize the five impact patterns and unify them, well, we might yet make it. What do you think, Doctor? Any ideas?" He asked hopeful to finally have someone to help him.
"Well, um, basically…" He trailed off and Winter rolled her eyes at him.
"He basically has no clue what you're talking about Professor. Sorry." The Doctor glared at her, annoyed at what she had just said and ignoring the fact that he knew it was true.
"Nothing?" Yana asked downtrodden. He knew it wasn't a good idea to get his hoped up but the Doctor was a learned man; it was a possibility - however small - that he knew something about the science... and Yana had to try.
"I'm not from around these parts. I've never seen a system like it. Sorry."
"No, no. I'm sorry. It's my fault. There's been so little help." The Doctor truly did feel bad about not being able to help but there was little he could do. He turned when he heard a loud shout.
"Oh my God." He saw Martha set a hand on the table and recognised it instantly. "You've got a hand. A hand in a jar. A hand in a jar in your bag."
"That's—that's my hand!" He cried a little bit shocked.
"I said I had a Doctor detector." Jack said happily. Ari looked over to him a bit her lip trying to keep in the laugh that was bubbling at her lips.
"Chan—is this a tradition amongst your people—tho?" Chantho asked confused.
"Not on my street. What d'you mean that's your hand? You've got both your hands, I can see them." Martha looked closely, trying to see any difference between the Doctor's hands but she could seen none.
"Long story. I lost my hand Christmas Day. In a swordfight." He told her. Winter thought back to all the stories her doctor had told her but she didn't recognise any mention of that one.
"What? And you grew another hand?" She was still frowning and looking between the hands.
"Um yeah. Yeah I did. Yeah. Hello." He waved his fingers at her but Martha didn't smile.
"Might I ask what species are you?" Yana asked, curious as to what kind of biology allowed such a thing to happen. While they talked Winter went over to Martha and explained what would have actually happened.
"Timelord's regenerate right?" Martha nodded, knowing that. "But there is a period of time - around 15 hours- where if something happens to them, they can use their regeneration energy to fix it. The Doctor must have been in the first 15 hours for his hand to have grown back."
"But her grew another hand!" She was still trying to wrap her mind around the concept while also trying to figure out why Winter knew about it when she had only just met the Doctor.
"Hello again." He must have heard Martha. "It's fine. Look. Really, it's me." He held out his hand and wiggled it. This time Martha did giggle but it was a nervous one.
"All this time and you're still full of surprises." The Doctor clicked his tongue in agreement and winked at her.
"Chan-you are most unusual—tho." She commented on their odd behaviour thinking back to her own civilisation and keeping back tears.
"Well…"
"So what about those things outside? The...things. What are they?" Ari asked, moving over to where Jack was and taking hold of his hand. Jack smiled at her and raised their clasped hands to him lips and kissed them, comforting her hair.
"We call them the Futurekind. Which is a myth in itself, but, uh, it is feared they are what we will become. Unless we reach Utopia."
"And Utopia is…" The Doctor asked.
"Oh, every human knows of Utopia. Where have you been?" Thinking quickly, Winter intervened.
" He's a bit of a hermit." She told Yana, fighting off a smile at the look the others were giving her.
"A hermit with friends?" Yana asked, not quite believing what he was hearing. But then thinking about what had happened over the last few minutes he decided that it wasn't something that was that unusual.
"Oh yeh. He belongs to Hermits United. Meets up every ten years. Swap stories about caves. It's good fun…for a hermit. So, um, Utopia?" She had lost her flow a little way in the middle and so went back to the original topic they had started.
Yana crooked his finger and lead them to a computer that showed a navigational chart with a blinking red dot on it. "The call came from across the stars over and over again. Come to Utopia. Originated from that point."
"Where is that?" The Doctor asked looking at the screen next to Yana.
"Oh, it's far beyond the Condensate Wilderness." He told him. Winter could hear the longing and hope in the man's voice. "Out towards the wildlands and the dark matter reefs. Calling us in. The last of the humans. Scattered across the night."
"What do you think's out there?" She couldn't help but ask the question. Yana looked at the girl and smiled lightly.
"I don't know. A colony, a city, some sort of haven? The Science Foundation created the Utopia Project thousands of years ago to preserve mankind—to find a way of surviving beyond the collapse of reality itself. Now perhaps they found it. Perhaps not. But it's worth a look, don't you think?"
"Oh yes." Yana began looking off into the distance unaware the Doctor was speaking to him. "Professor? Professor?" He snapped back into reality and looked at the Doctor, who was staring worriedly.
"I—Right, that's enough talk. There's work to do. Now if you could leave. Thank you." He walked away.
"You all right?"
"Yes. I'm fine! And busy!" He said slightly irritant at the fact that there was nothing left that he could really do to make the rocket fly. All he had was hope. hope and the incessant drumming that plagued him every second.
"Except that rocket's not going to fly, is it?" Yana turned sharply towards the man. "This footprint mechanism thing, it's not working."
"We'll find a way!" He told the Doctor, but he could see it in the man's eyes. He didn't really believe that. Well, we'll have to change that then wont we?
"You're stuck on this planet. And you haven't told them, have you? That lot out there, they still think they're gonna fly." It wasn't a question, but Yana still felt he needed to answer it.
"Well, it's better to let them live in hope."
"Quite right, too. And I must say, Professor…" He removed his jacket and put it down on a nearby chair. "Um, what was it?"
"His name is Yana. You dolt." Ari said rolling her eyes at the man. "Do you have no attention span?" By the time she had said this, the Doctor had already began talking to the Professor and so her comment fell on deaf ears.
"Professor Yana. This new science is well beyond me, but all the same, a boost reversal circuit, in any time frame, must be a circuit which reverses the boost. So, I wonder, what would happen if I did this?" The Doctor picked up the circuit and used his Sonic Screwdriver on it before switching it on giving them power.
"Chan—it's working—tho!" Chantho exclaimed happily and also somewhat shocked.
"But how did you do that?" Yana asked, shocked at what had just happened.
"Oh, we've been chatting away. I forgot to tell you, I'm brilliant." The Doctor grinned. Winter moved over to look at the readings on the screen. He is brilliant, but he's also got a big head too.
[][][]
The Doctor and Yana were working on either sides of the cuircet board that Martha and Chantho had brought over for them. The two had laid it in the centre of the lab and immediately, the two scientist had began to work on it.
Everyone had a job to do, everyone except Ari - who had chosen to sit back and watch them all work, claiming that when it came to alien technology, she wasn't the one to call. Apparently, she had tried to fix something once and it ended up nearly destroying her best friend's car.
And then there was Winter.
She knew enough about what they were saying to help, or at the very least, she could have helped Martha. But when she had looked over to her, Martha had given her such a cold glare that Winter wondered if she was trying to freeze her.
She hadn't even bothered trying to help the Doctor. It would seem that showing up under odd circumstances and knowing more than an ordinary human should caused the Timelord to become suspicious. Who knew?
So that left her sitting down next to Ari, watching all of the bustle about. And Winter was bored. She began to watch Jack, as it seemed her sitting partner was and a thought occurred to her. "How did you and Jack meet?" She asked.
Ari looked over to the blonde and smiled fondly. "My best friend and I - Faith - went camping for her birthday and it happened to be in the exact location where a group of cannibals were living, which also happened to be what Jack and his team were investigating." Winter frowned and looked at the woman next to her. She didn't seem to be lying but then again...
Seeing her face Ari laughed quietly at her. "Yeh, I know. Not your average first meeting, but hey, we all managed to get out of it alive and somewhat unscathed."
"That's...good then...I guess," Witner murmured, watching the Doctor work. Ari watched Winter and smiled slightly.
"What's up with you and big head over there?" She asked motioning to the Doctor.
"It's uh, complicated." Winter told her. Ari gave her the 'try me' look and Winter sighed. "The first time I met him I was 13. He crashed into my yard and then ate all this food and left. The next time I saw him was 8 years later. He saved us from an alien invasion and asked me to travel with him, two years later anyway. So I did. Anyway long story short, we went on adventures, had a good time, ran a lot and then went back to the TARDIS."
"So why does he seem to be avoiding you like the plague?" Ari asked her cautiously. She had seen the way Winter had looked at the man and had also seen the looks he gave her most of the time. It did not look like he trusted her.
"Because this is the first time he's met me." At the frown Ari gave, Winter went to explain. "The Doctor, as you are well aware is a time traveller. Ergo, he doesn't always meet people in the right order. This is the first time he's ever met me and I didn't give such a great first impression so he's very...suspicious, I guess."
"And it must be killing you on the inside." It wasn't a question so Winter didn't answer it. She only looked at Ari and bit her lip.
"If Jack didn't know who you were, or he didn't trust you, wouldn't you feel like dying on the inside?" Neither girl talked after that. They just stared at the other's working hard.
The only time they were interupted was when Atillo's voice came over ther speaker. "Professor, tell the Doctor we've found his blue box."
"Ah!" They heard the Doctor cry.
"Doctor." Jack called from where he was working. The Doctor moved around the room, almost jumping about with happiness, ingroring the rest of them who were looking at him like he was crazy.
"Professor, it's a wild stab in the dark, but I may just have found you a way out."
He ran into the TARDIS and came out holding a huge black wire in both hands, inserting it into the outlet. "Extra power. Little bit of a cheat, but who's counting? Jack, you're in charge of the retro-feeds."
By now, Winter and Ari were standing up looking at the TARDIS. "That's the TARDIS?" Ari asked. "It doesn't really look like much does it?" Winter wasn't paying attention; she was too busy trying to remember what her Doctor had told her about this adventure.
Because she knew something bad was going to happen. In fact, it wasn't just that, she could actually feel that something bad was going to happen to them but Winter for the life of her couldn't figure out what it was.
"Oh, am I glad to see that thing." She heard Martha in the background. Still though, she didn't pay attention. She just couldn't remember what was going to happen and right now, she needed to. But the thing is, she thought, the Doctor didn't tell me I was here; he couldn't so that means that I have to figure out what I have to do myself.
Come on Winter. Think, think, think. What is it that I can do? He told me about Ari, well at least he sort of told me about her…Come on! Out of frustration, Winter hit the outside of the TARDIS.
As she did so, images flew through her head. Images of what had happened to her all the way up to what was happening now. Everything she had done so far was shown to her and then once it had caught up, she saw what was going to happen.
The pain, the destruction, the horror. And all because of the Master.
Winter retracted her hand sharply with a gasp and suddenly, she knew what she had to do. "Are you alright Winter?" Ari asked placing a hand gently on the girls shoulder. She was worried about her, she had gotten very pale. Paler than she actually was.
"No - no Ari you need to trust me now. It's not going to be easy and you'll have to leave Jack but I need you to do something for me." Winter was panicking and Ari could see it. She was asking her to trust the girl after only knowing her for a few hours, but somehow Ari did.
"Alright. Okay. Tell me what to do."
[][][]
Ari had gone. She had waited until Jack had gone down with the Doctor and then she had left using her Teleporter. She had created it using one of the more basic Vortex Manipulators that had fallen through the rift as a template and had tweaked it.
It had taken a while, but eventually she had managed to find a way to use the team's DNA as a tracking device. In theory she could locate any of her team in any country and in any point in time. It was a theory that she had proven when Jack had disappeared and right now she couldn't be happier to have it working.
Ari found herself in a room. Immediately she saw that it was Owen's room and immediately she covered her eyes. Owen was a prick in her opinion and he was also a man whore. He constantly had a girl in his bed and he was always coming in drunk.
When she heard nothing she opened her eyes and saw that Owen was passed out on his sofa. Rolling her eyes she walked over to him and shook him hard. "Owen, Owen get up." He murmured slightly but nothing else happened. She tried again and still nothing happened. She let out a sigh of frustration and then an idea came to her.
Smiling, Ari went over to his sink and filled a glass of water. She was still smiling as she walked back to Owen. "I am not sorry about this," she muttered before chucking the water on his face.
Owen, suddenly feeling something cold on his face jumped up. "Shit!" He went to punch whoever was near him but they caught his hand and flipped it. "Ow! Get off!"
Ari rolled her eyes again and let his hand go. "Owen it's me." She told him, still holding onto her hand. "Only me so don't do anything stupid." With that she let go of his hand and she watched as he rubbed it gently.
"What are you doing here?" He asked angrily.
"I have it on a very good source that in 18 months, the world is going to fall under a incredibly dangerous threat and we need to start working on a way to help people now!" Owen looked at her. He believed her, her and her sources had managed to save their arses a good few times so there was no question what she was saying was true.
"What do we do?" He asked. Ari smiled slightly and began to tell him their plan.
[][][]
Winter watched from beside the TARDIS as the scene fell into chaos.
She could hear the words Martha was speaking that would inevitably be the downfall of the human race and there was nothing she could do to stop it. If she did, the timelines would collapse , creating a alternate reality where she had no idea what would happen.
At least, that was what her Doctor had told her once. And she watched, as the Doctor talked with a hint of hope in his flustered voice. "This thing, this device, it rewrites biology, changes a Timelord into a human."
"And it's the same watch." Martha told him sincerely.
"It can't be." The Doctor told her. But it is Doctor, and I am sorry because everything will be changed soon. From her spot, she heard an alarm bell blare through the speakers and then it was shut off.
Winter turned her head towards YANA. He was still looking at the fobwatch intently, like he was trying to place where he had found the watch but he couldn't. She looked at him as his hands clutched his head and his old face scrunched in - what Winter could only assume was an intense pain.
Winter found herself wondering how the Master had become what he had. Where he had turned wrong. The TARDIS hadn't told her much of the Doctor's personal life but she had seen enough from the Time Machine to know that they had been very close once. It was a hidden thought at the back of the connection the TARDIS had given her.
And this connection she had formed with the TARDIS had stayed once her hand had left her. She could hear the soft hum in her mind…feel the caressing strokes that she was giving her, to comfort her for what was to come. "Be brave my dear Swan. Things will turn out fine in the end." The soft made Winter smile slightly and she hoped that what was to come would affect the Doctor too badly. For she knew it was too much to hope that he would come out fine, even if she were to play her part in the plan with perfection; the Master would be adamant to ensure that the Doctor would suffer as much pain as was possible, but she still hoped to lessen it.
And then she heard it. It was soft but dominating. And it wanted to be heard. "The drums, the drums, the drums. The never-ending drumbeat. Open me, you human fool. Open the light and summon me and receive my majesty."
"It is time to begin my Swan. Be strong and know that I am always with you." Winter turned and opened the door to the TARDIS and tried to contain the tears as she realised there was nothing she could do for Chantho.
Leaning against the console, she took in a deep breath. "Now what?" She asked.
" The Master will go to Earth as it is the Doctor's weak point. He will try to integrate himself into human life and to do so will go as far back as possible, the Doctor however, will be able to lock the co-ordinates between now and the last place he visited on Earth." She nodded in understanding so far. "You must align the central navigation system and lock in the following co-ordinates. This will ensure that the Master only has an 18 month period in which to work."
Winter followed the instructions closely. There was no room for error now, if she did, things would go catastrophically wrong.
Once she finished that she asked what else needed to be done. "You need an identity. The Amber of this time is in Australia, researching her powers. You need to become invisible, only to be shown when there is no longer any hope." A whirring sound fell from the console and small necklace was shown to her.
It had interloping circles, some small and some big; the largest was ringed with bigger circles and the smaller ones formed a tear shape. There were thin gold lines cutting through the circles and small dots around them. They seemed to be random however looking closer, Winter found she understood some of it. 'Protection.'
"What is it?" Winter asked breathlessly.
"It's a perception filter. It's stronger than the average one so you should only be seen by who and when you want. Use it to watch over and help the others because they will need it and when the time comes, you must use all your power to help the humans."
"But when will I know?" She asked the TARDIS whilst putting on the necklace and tucking it under her shirt.
"I will tell you my Swan. Do not fret." WInter's head snapped towards the door as she heard it opening. Quickly, she hid in a corner of the room and watched as the Master limped into the TARDIS clutching him side fiercely.
"Deadlocked." He said happily, pressing a button on the console. At the closer look, Winter could see the blood staining the once white shirt that was now ladled with dirt and dust. She could hear the Doctor faintly from outside the door.
"Let me in! Let me in!" He cried. She also heard Martha cry out with shock when she saw that Chantho was dead. The Master was ignoring them all, focusing on the bullet wound in his side. "
"Just let me in!" She heard the Doctor shout again.
"Killed by an insect! A girl! How inappropriate. Still, if the Doctor can be young and strong, then so can I. The Master…reborn." From where she was hiding, Winter could see the bright golden light explode out of him. It was the same light that she saw the first time she met her Doctor. And just like then, he let out a scream.
Finally it was over and in the old man's place was a very familiar face. "Ha, ha! Ha, ha, ha!" He ran around the console, arms flung out. "Ha, ha, ha!" And just like she knew he would, Winter heard the Master begin to gloat. "Doctor—ooh, new voice. Hello, hello, hello." He began, testing his voice. "Anyway, why don't we stop and have a nice little chat while I tell you all my plans and you can work out a way to stop me? I don't think!"
Winter stared at the man in shock. She had known, or at least, the TARDIS had shown her who he was but up until that moment, she didn't register the fact that he was who he was.
The Doctor's voice could be heard over the speaker pleading with the insane man. "I'm asking you really properly! Just stop! Just think!"
"Use my name." He demanded.
"Master. I'm sorry." He said quietly and winter's heart flipped in misery for the Timelord.
"Tough!" The sound that Winter had come to know well started up in the large room, echoing through the halls. Winter began making her way backwards, constantly keeping both her eyes on the Master in front of her. Phase one was completed, now began the beginning of the second and to do that, she needed to know that Ari had done her task.
The TARDIS, in all her loyalty did whatever she could to stop the renegade but it wasn't enough. "Oh, no you don't!" He cried, making the column move once more. "End of the Universe. Have fun. Bye bye!"
Oh and have fun he could, The Master thought grinning. The End of the Universe was, ironically enough, the beginning of his rain of the unworthy apes.
Let them all fall down in submission to their Lord and Master.
Yeh so, i hope you liked it, and i hope Winter's thoughts werent confusing. I would like to thank Browwnbug (thanks for wishing me luck on collage), georgie8t(hope you liked it) and Theta-McBride (thank you for reviewing). Also thanks to all who have read, followed and favourited.
Here is what the necklace looks like. .