Many thanks to my reviewers darck ben, Lokisbutt, and Wings of Sanguine.
Chapter 1: Exposition, part 1
Small explosions followed the beautiful young woman with milk chocolate skin as she ran for her life inside the hallways of the spaceship. The zillion tiny braids upon her head swished side to side as she dodged blaster shots and exploding fire. Turning a corner the woman paused a second to catch her breath before pushing herself to enter the second doorway. Taking out a small metal ball from the pouch around her waist she headed straight to the communication console and placed the ball inside a small chamber. Her hands moved quickly over the controls and keyboard as she downloaded the information she needed. When the metal ball glowed softly in confirmation of the download she put it back in her pouch, drew one of her guns and fired four shots into the console. Keeping her gun at the ready she slid the grate off the nearby maintenance shaft and threw herself inside, feet first. The shaft was positioned in a downward angle and it took her right where she needed to go, the ship bay on the lowest level. Blasting the exit grate with her gun the young woman shot out of the shaft and rolled as she hit the hard metal floor. The crackle of electricity sounded and the young woman looked up to speak to her opponent.
"You don't have to do this, sister."
The weapons in Nebula's grip crackled once again as her dark and empty eyes focused on the young woman still on the floor. "But I do, Melsa. Father has ordered it. This is what happens when you follow that traitor Gamora, little sister. I did try to warn you."
Melsa's eyes lowered to the floor in despair as she curled in on herself. "I'm so sorry, Nebula." She whispered as her sister moved toward her like a predator preparing herself for the kill. "Too little too late, sister." Nebula raised her staff to make a killing blow and Melsa's eyes hardened. Quickly drawing herself up, a gun in each hand, Melsa fired twice into Nebula's chest, catching her off guard. Climbing into the nearest ship before Nebula could recover, Melsa started the engines and flew the craft toward the exit port. Without looking back she blasted into space.
Mels busied herself by digging the dirt out from underneath her fingernails as she waited for Rory to finish running his errands. She'd much rather be with her mum, looking after last minute details, but Amy had stopped talking to her last week when she realized nothing she could say would convince Mels to change her mind about coming to her best mates' wedding. So here she was, two days before D-day, with one parent giving her the silent treatment and the other dragging her along while he did his shopping like an irritated babysitter. Letting out a load sigh she slouched further down the park bench she was sitting on and stuck in her earbuds. She kept her eyes open as she let herself zone out to Pink Floyd.
"Mels!" Mels shifted her eyes to Rory, carefully holding his newly dry cleaned tux. She didn't bother to take her earbuds out as she stood up to stretch. She looked warily at her father and wondered if she should risk asking if he was done. She should have made her escape while she had the chance but it was two days before his wedding and she wasn't sure how much she'd see him afterwards. Would he be grateful when the time came for her to kill the Doctor? Or would he be like all of the Doctor's other playthings and be all hero worshipping? Mels hoped not. Rory had always had a good head on his shoulders. He wasn't taken in so easily by the Doctor two years ago with Prisoner Zero and he wouldn't be taken in when the Oncoming Storm took him and Amy away in his TARDIS.
"All done then, Rory? Or have you come up with another way to bore me to death." She didn't bother to keep the aggression out of her tone and inwardly rolled her eyes when he tried to suppress a flinch. It was a knee jerk reaction from him by now and Mels couldn't really blame him for it. She had, after all, gone to great pains to instill a fear of herself in him in the early days of primary when she hadn't realized who he would be to her one day. Rory had never truly been scared of her but he had learned at an early age that when Mels was in a rotten mood it was in everyone's best interest and physical safety to be some distance away. Mels had long ago gotten over her disappointment at her parents' dislike of her violent tendencies. It wasn't her fault she'd been engineered and raised as a made to order god/Time Lord killer with psychopathic tendencies but for her parents' sake and her own convenience she'd learned to channel her more murderous impulses into petty theft and thrill seeking. The delinquency she indulged in kept her skills sharp, herself entertained, and as a bonus a closet full of expensive knick knacks and the beginnings of an aneurysm for Madame K.
"You wouldn't be bored with me if you'd just apologize to Amy." Rory told her for the tenth time as they walked toward the pub to confirm his stag night reservation.
"Yeah, well, that's not gonna happen. I've been telling you guys for years I don't do weddings. Your fault for not listening."
Rory shook his head. "We listened, we just thought you'd, you know, make an exception."
Mels shoved open the pub door and ignored the loud bang that sounded as it hit the wall. Rory followed quickly on her heals, narrowly dodging the backswing as the door shut closed behind them.
"Sorry 'bout that Mr. Kreg." Rory winced. Old Phineas Kreg, fat and old and on his fourth divorce, didn't even bother to look up at them as he poured Mrs. Buttonwent what looked like her third beer of the afternoon.
"Never you mind Rory, that girl breaks my door half the time she comes in for her shift. I'dve fired 'er by now if she weren't such good eye candy and half decent with the tumbler." Mels grinned as she went behind the bar to pour herself and Rory some of the brew on tap. Kreg scowled at her and she knew it'd come out of her next check but she couldn't be bothered to care about much these days.
Kreg wiped his hands as he lumbered over to their side of the bar.
"You need something, son?"
"Uh, yeah, I just wanted to make sure Stephen gave you the money for my stag tomorrow night. The check hasn't been deposited and, um, I was a bit worried you didn't get it."
Kreg frowned at Rory. "I got the money. Didn't feel right depositing it when, well…" Kreg shrugged his shoulders. Mels, standing off to the side, felt an ember catch fire just below her ribcage and start to slowly burn up her body. She watched Rory's brow furrow in confusion and bit her lip to hold back the scream of rage threatening to burn through her throat.
"When what?" Rory slowly asked.
Kreg shrugged his shoulder, his face devoid of expression. "Well it's not like you're actually gonna get married. Surprised the thing hasn't been called off yet. Half o' the village thinks Amy's gonna leave you standing at the altar. I mean, this is Amy Pond we're talking about! I've seen her with enough with blokes in 'ere with her tiny outfits to know that if she doesn't get cold feet tomorrow night and call it off you'll both be at the courthouse filing yer divorce papers in just a couple months. You might think that's over and done now but let me give you some advice boy; people don't change. And Amelia is as flighty as—" Mel's hand was pushing Old Phineas Kreg's bald head against the bar top, his face grimaced in pain and shock as she squished it like a bug against the grainy wood of the counter. She didn't need to twist his arm behind his back or press her knee between his legs to further push his gut against the faucet of the bar sink but she did it anyway. It felt good. Causing him pain, silencing his diatribe against her honored mother. It always felt very cathartic, silencing people like she was meant to do. Silencing the power of a person's words, their actions, their life…and all she had to do was twist her arm this way, move her finger to that position, stand her ground and keep her stance. She smiled happily down at him.
"Talked your way into this, didn't you? Gotta say, men say the darndest things sometimes. It's all 'Sow a few wild oats, take things as they come, have a good time with the girls and so forth.' You think that don't you? I know. I've heard you say it enough. I think you were a bit like Amy in your younger years, y'know, before you lost any and all sex appeal. I bet you were quite the ladies' man. You look to me the kind of guy who had to fight 'em off." She told him all this pleasantly, almost conversationally. She turned her head to look at Rory who had on Blank Face Number 3 and still holding his wedding attire delicately in his arms was staring dispassionately at the scene before him. An intense feeling of shame and embarrassment over Rory seeing her lose control briefly overcame her put she pushed it down. What was the use of shame when the only opinion that mattered was her own? "Now doesn't he look to you like the kind of guy who had to fight 'em off?" Penny in the air…
"Yeah, with fists and broom handles probably." Her father said dourly. And the penny drops. "Cash that check, Mr. Kreg. And I want Mike running the pub tomorrow or I'll tell my dad to move his golf association meetings to that new place in Upper Leadworth. That'll cut into your business quite a lot, won't it? C'mon Mels."
Together they walked out of the pub and stalked out into the early evening light. Mels couldn't help from being impressed with her father. He was walking slightly ahead of her, posture straightened to his full height and his chest puffed slightly out and proud. Rory so often came across as an unimpressive pushover, weak and set stiffly in the ways of a proper Englishman bred in a tiny village but rarely, just ever so rarely, he did something like this. It was so like her father to hit his enemy not with his fist but where it would hurt them most. There was no way Kreg would risk pissing off Brian Williams who was friendly and held some influence with most of the people on the village council even though he wasn't a member himself. It was moments like these that convinced her that caring, boring, disgustingly normal Rory was The Last Centurion. That the whole sharing and caring thing was just an act he put on so when he decided to show his displeasure people would be sure to take note. He really was Amy's Mr. Perfect. Any minute now the man in front of her would shake off his dangerous aura and cowardly put back on the disguise of an insecure and awkward twenty two year old. It chafed at her a bit, the falseness of it all. No, it downright pissed her off that Rory had such a powerful presence that made people shit themselves and he didn't just not use it, he pretended it wasn't there at all!
Right on cue Rory's shoulders sagged into a slouch and a puff of air sounded as he let out a loud sigh.
"You shouldn't have done that, you can't afford to be fired."
"I can do whatever the hell I want."
Rory glanced at Mels, his eyes desperate and imploring as he swallowed before opening his mouth to speak.
"Why does everyone assume Amy will just run off without telling anyone? I mean, it could be me. I'm just as nervous as Amy about all this marriage stuff." Mels snorted at that though Rory didn't hear her, so caught up in winding himself into the act of insecurity. She didn't know why he bothered, a blind man could see just how much Rory adored Amy. He'd never leave her standing at the altar and Amy wouldn't either. She already knew how this love story ended and it was with a happy ending followed by an ever after of the Doctor ruining them and Madame K rescuing their baby girl from the Doctor's grip and raising her to avenge her parents and protect the whole universe by striking the Time Lord dead before he can even think about stepping foot on Trenzalore. Melody Pond was a superhero who would make sure silence fell before the question was even asked. She would save the universe by killing the Doctor. Mels had imagined it often enough, a shot to each heart and then a goodbye kiss to the man-god who was her reason for existing before laughing smugly in his face as realization dawned on him and her freedom was finally won. Then she would find a post Demon's Run version of her parents and they could be a real family. Not friends chained together by lonely childhoods but a family linked by blood.
"I mean, people act like Amy would just up and leave but she wouldn't do that to me! We're gonna be married and have children and live in Upper Leadworth where Amy can compete over the best garden with our neighbors and I'll be a proper doctor and Amy will spend her days making a name for herself with her art and raising our children and…Why would anyone think Amy would give all that up? That she'll just run off on our wedding day without looking back?"
"Because she will." Rory's face went pale and his mouth fell open in horror. Mels laughed. "You will too stupid. It's called a honeymoon." Rory's mouth closed and he started grumbling some unkind words aimed at her propensity for winding him up. He was more relaxed now and Mels was glad of it. "Listen, I know Amy just as well as I know you and I can guarantee your wedding day is gonna be perfect. So there's some anxiety and cold feet going around, yeah? Well the telly says that's normal rubbish that happens before every wedding so just get through the night before in one piece and you'll have your happy ending. Promise."
Rory had stopped walking and was now staring at her face, a deeply thoughtful expression adorning his visage.
"Can I ask you something? And will you answer? I mean really answer, with the truth?" She knew what he was going to ask but she couldn't answer him. Couldn't she? What harm would it really do this close to the wedding? She'd helped him research the Doctor two years ago, he knew the basics of time travel and timelines and that the bigger on the inside was just dimensional transcendence. Mels averted her gaze as she thought, focusing her eyes on the door to her building she felt a spark of fear, biting her lip and turning back to her father she noticed her heart was beating faster and she felt mildly nauseous. "No. You know me, I'll just lie anyway." Turning on her heel she raced into her building and up the stairs to her flat. Looking out the window she saw Rory getting into his car and watched him drive away.
"Melody Pond" The priest rasped.
Mels walked over to her bed and pulled the mattress to the floor. Embedded near the bottom of the headboard was a small top of the line 51st century safe. Opening it she pulled out her eyedrive and put it on. Looking up she saw that there was not just one Priest of the Silence but two.
"Melody Pond, Bringer of the Silence, the Church has a new mission for you." One of the priests held out a small communicator for her to take. Mels let a frown show on her face as she took the communicator into her hands, half her brain figuring out how it worked, its relative age, and the many special features the Church had added to it while the other half of her brain focused on the priests and the new mission they had for her.
"What mission?"
"The Church requires of you to act as an ambassador to one of our oldest allies, from the earliest days of the schism from the heretic Tasha Lem. The Nestene Consciousness has been troubling Madame Kovarian as of late and she wishes you to act in her stead, to offer the Consciousness any aid they shall require and to heal the rift in the alliance." Melsa was long practiced in reading the lines between what Madame K said and what Madame K meant.
"So my mission is to spy on the Nestene and to kill the Consciousness if the alliance can't be saved. Sounds simple enough. Hope this part of the Consciousness is smarter than the piece that tried to invade in '05, now that was just sloppy. Shop window dummies? They almost deserved what the Doctor did to them." The priests had no answer to that but she didn't really expect one. Tapping the screen of her new communicator she searched for the coordinates they were sending her to. Her breath caught when she found them and she couldn't quite stop her hands from shaking in rage.
"This is three quadrants away! It'll take me days to get there! I can't just disappear before my parents' wedding! People will talk!" No. No no no no no no no NO! She had one day left with her parents before everything changed. She couldn't leave now! Not before making up with Amy. Not before saying goodbye to Rory. She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "Fine, but I leave after Amy and Rory say their vows." She had been planning on going to the wedding. She'd found a good spot nestled beside the disused organ in the balcony where no one could see her so she could witness their declaration of love. It was a risk but not much of one, after all, it was really the reception she couldn't attend.
"The situation is urgent. You will leave immediately." Mels stood her ground. This was non-negotiable, she couldn't back down on this.
"After the vows." She growled out.
A crackle of electricity and she was in pain, convulsing violently on the bare wooden floor. She refused to scream as she grabbed at the eyedrive, trying desperately to peel it off. When it finally stopped she was curled in on herself and gasping desperately for air, muscles twitching and throat hoarse. She couldn't stop herself from screaming after all. Shaking, she slowly pulled herself up to her feet.
"After…the vows." The priests stood in solidarity together, each unmoved over the pain of their savior. Pain was nothing Mels couldn't deal with. She wouldn't be the weapon she was without it. She was already mostly healed from the electricity and she could feel her strength, along with her anger, coming back.
The priests regarded her silently as they stared each other down. She refused to be the first to break. It was several minutes before the priests offered her a compromise.
"You, Melody Pond, will leave immediately. After your mission is complete the Church's time piece will return you to the 26th of June, 2010. You will then await the day of your true purpose and Silence Will Fall." It was as good as she was going to get and she immediately started packing her essentials and her more favored knick knacks.
The Silence had placed a ship above her flat ages ago but this was the first opportunity she'd had to use it aside from her monthly reports to Madame K. Standing in front of the center console Melody delicately placed her fingers on the lid of her right eye and gently peeled the eyedrive away from her face. All those times she'd worn it and she'd never known it could hurt her. Never again. Breaking the eyedrive into halves and then into fourths she angrily threw the pieces at the furthest wall. Entering the coordinates for the outskirts of the Kree empire Mels started the engines, lifted the ship off her building, and adjusted the ship so it would blast into space. She never once looked back.