CHAPTER 76

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A TEMPTING BARGAIN

Not long after the Doctor left, the Wolves returned to their headquarters at UNIT HQ in Donna's TARDIS after making sure that they had helped the survivors of Masada all that they could first. When they were all back home once more, Martha immediately contacted Dorothy and Michelle and asked them both to return as soon as possible because she had a feeling that they would be needing as much help as they could get soon.

She had immediately received a less than enthusiastic reaction from Dorothy. She had actually said more than a few choice curse words when Martha had mentioned the Brethren to her on the phone which was an extremely rare thing for her. Apparently her last experience with them wasn't something that she remembered too fondly.

That only made the Wolves even more worried about what they were about to get themselves into soon since this was the same woman who had once killed a Dalek with a baseball bat.

Now as they waited for Dorothy and Michelle to arrive, Lilith had decided to go ahead and use her power to unlock the now erased memories of Clara's echo from when she was a vampire in the hopes that she could help them find the Brethren. They just hoped that she actually knew something worthwhile which was far from guaranteed. For all that they knew, the vampire Clara had never even met the Brethren in person after all.

"Uh, are you sure that this won't burn out my brain or something?" The former vampire Clara said nervously as Lilith advanced upon her with a sinister look on her face.

"Lilith, stop trying to freak her out. She doesn't even remember what we're angry at her about anyway," Donna chastised her even as she gently rocked the newborn Lauren in an attempt to get her to go to sleep.

So far it was proving less than successful. Lauren was watching all of this with keen interest which only worried Donna. It made her wonder exactly how much her little girl already understood about what was going on around her.

She was a Time Lady after all and she had absolutely no idea how smart that made her right from the start. She just hoped that whatever she was about to hear Clara's echo say didn't warp her mind somehow.

"That's all about to change soon, Mother Donna," Lilith said as she gave Clara's echo a malevolent smile.

"What does she mean by that? Listen I - I don't think that I want to go through with this. Please," Clara's echo pleaded.

"It's going to be alright. She's just trying to wind you up because she's angry at you. Don't worry. She doesn't kill . . . anymore," Emmy said with a warm smile.

"Was that supposed to reassure me?" Clara's echo said with a frown.

Then she saw a brief look of regret on Lilith's face at Emmy's words that made her calm down somewhat despite Lilith's best attempts to scare her. That was when she realized that maybe Lilith wasn't as bad as she was pretending to be.

"Look, whatever I did . . . I'm still not even sure that I did anything, but if I did do something to you that I've somehow forgotten then I'm sorry, okay?" Clara's echo said in an apologetic tone.

Lilith finally smiled as she dropped her scary Carrionite act and said, "I know. I can tell."

"How?" Clara's echo asked curiously.

"I know so many things about you now simply by being this close to you. It's a Carrionite's gift to instantly understand everything about a person just by listening to them speak a few words. There is great power in words after all especially the spoken word because those come from the heart. For instance, just by listening to you speak I now know your name, whether you're lying or telling the truth whenever you say something, your basic nature and personality, and . . . I can also see glimpses of your history including all of those things that have now been erased from time. And soon you will remember these things too, all of them, because I can only see so much," Lilith said as she gestured towards her and began to mumble an incantation.

"What if I don't want to remember though?" Clara's echo said in a frightened voice even as Lilith's spell started to take effect.

Then she started to whimper and cry as she said in a low voice filled with pain, "No."

"I'm so sorry but this is necessary. We need your help," Lilith said as she put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Emmy couldn't help but briefly smile because this just showed exactly how much Lilith had changed from when she had first met her. She really didn't like putting anyone through pain anymore for any reason. She was sure that if she knew her sister that she was already feeling absolutely terrible about trying to scare her earlier now.

"Great. Now I feel like a major league louse for doing this," Donna said in a guilty voice as she saw Clara's echo start shaking with barely contained emotion while tears started pouring down her face.

"No. This can't be true but it is. I killed so many people. I did . . . I can't believe what I did. It's . . . I can't even talk about it because it's just too . . . It's too much to bear. I'm so sorry. So sorry," Clara's echo said in an emotional voice as she started to sob.

"Don't. It wasn't your fault. You were turned into a vampire against your will, and you can only resist the hunger for so long no matter how hard you try. You can trust me on that," Ileana said in a sympathetic tone.

"I should have been stronger. Fought harder," Clara's echo said in a voice filled with bitter self-recrimination.

"All of that's been undone now anyway because time has been altered. You never did any of those things now. All of those people are still alive," Calliope reassured her.

"That doesn't matter because I still remember it. It still happened in some time somewhere," Clara's echo said in a voice filled with sorrow.

"It's going to be alright. I'll remove all of your memories of that other reality as soon as you tell us what we need to know, okay? You won't even remember meeting us at all if you don't want to after we take you home. As far as you're concerned, none of this will have even happened," Lilith promised.

"You can do that? What am I saying? Of course you can do that. There doesn't seem to be much that you can't do does there?" Clara's echo said in an awestruck voice.

"Oh, believe me. I have my limits too and just as much of a guilty conscience as you do. I'm far from perfect, Clara Oswald," Lilith said in a sad voice.

"Is that part of the reason why you were so angry at me? I remind you of yourself?" Clara guessed.

Lilith's silence told her everything that she needed to know even as Donna quickly changed the subject as she asked, "So what can you tell us about this Brethren lot, Echo Girl? Did you ever actually meet any of them or discover anything about where we can find them?"

Clara's echo briefly let out a deep sigh as she said in a voice filled with sorrow that told all of them that she would really rather not have to remember anything from that time, "I never actually met the Brethren themselves, but I did get to meet one of their hired hands. In fact, he's the one who first approached me actually and offered to set up the whole deal between us."

"Wait a minute. So you mean that none of that was your idea? The Brethren came to you?" Donna asked in surprise.

"That's right. That seems to be the way that they work things from what I gathered about them. You don't call them. They call you and only when they want something from you in return. In my case, they wanted me to get them some old artifact that would keep them from being affected by changes in time that were about to be caused by someone called the Matriarch. Now I know why they wanted it so badly. They offered to change me back to human if I would help them, and then they stabbed me in the back once I did what they wanted. They didn't do anything to help me whatsoever. Apparently I didn't have anything else that they wanted," Clara's echo said in anger.

"So we're dealing with a bunch of liars who'll welch on a deal at the first opportunity. This just gets better and better," Donna said as she too became angry.

"So who was the man who set up the deal between you and the Brethren? Can you tell us anything about him like his name or where to find him?" Martha asked hopefully.

"Yeah, that I can help you with, fellow boss lady, and gladly too," Clara's echo said with an eager smile.

"Fellow boss lady?" Martha asked with a hint of amusement on her face.

"Some people are leaders and some are followers. Well, it may not look like it but I'm definitely a leader. Other people usually follow my lead. I'm almost always the boss," Clara's echo said proudly.

"I just bet you are," Martha said with a chuckle since she knew the original Clara well enough to know that it was probably true if this version of her was anything like her.

"Can we please get some answers now, 'Boss'?" Donna said with a frown.

Clara's echo smiled as she said, "Okay, other fellow boss lady. The Brethren's errand boy was a Time Lord and his name was The Corsair. He was this huge man with the body of a wrestler and a tattoo on his right arm of a snake . . ."

"It was eating its own tail, right? Yeah, I know him. He was a friend of the Doctor's and from what he remembers of him not the kind of bloke who would ever work for people like the Brethren. He's also supposed to be very, very dead based on what he told me about him once," Donna said in a worried tone.

She couldn't help but wonder what could have ever happened to him to make the once noble Time Lord act like this.

"Apparently a lot of things have changed for him lately then because he was definitely alive when I met him not to mention a very nasty fellow. I didn't like him at all. He practically made my skin crawl and that's coming from a former vampire," Clara's echo said with a tone of disapproval.

"So can you tell us anything about where we can locate him or the Brethren or how to get in touch with them?" Martha prodded Clara's echo once more because she could sense that she was still holding something back from them for some reason.

Clara's echo looked more than a bit worried as she said, "They won't come after me if I tell you anything, will they? I mean I hate to sound cowardly or anything because I'm really not worried about myself. I probably deserve whatever they might do to me but my family definitely doesn't."

"As far as they know, you don't remember a thing about them, and we can make sure that stays true by erasing your memories of them again when you leave, Clara. Please. We need your help because they could be up to something truly horrible even as we speak. We have to try to stop them while we still can," Martha pleaded.

Clara's echo nodded as she said, "Yeah, you're right. They're definitely bad news alright. I wouldn't put anything past them for sure. Okay, here's the scoop. The Corsair once let it slip that the Brethren all lived in a sort of traveling community that never stayed in one place for long. I got that feeling that it was on some kind of ship from what he said about it."

"Great. So we might never find them then. They could be anywhere," Donna said with a groan.

"Wait just a minute before jumping the gun there, Red. I was actually wondering that myself so I asked him how he knew where to locate them if they were always moving around," Clara's echo said with a grin.

"Yeah, and what did he say?" Donna asked eagerly.

"He said that he could always get ahold of them no matter how far that they went in time and space. He called it universal roaming or something like that. Do you get it, Ginge? He knows their private number. So there you go. You find Pirate Boy and he'll probably have them somewhere on his speed dial. As to where you find him, I can help you with that one too because I know his number. He tried to block it from me but I'm a whiz with computers so I was able to look it up anyway because I wanted to know as much about him as possible," Clara's echo said with a mischievous smile.

Donna smiled as she said, "I'm about to give him a call very soon then because I definitely can't wait to find out what he's been up to since returning to the land of the living."

"We have to be very careful what we say to him though. If he gets suspicious he may not come at all, and then we'll never find him," Martha advised.

"Why don't we give him exactly what he wants? Offer to make a deal with him about something since he and his bosses seem to like that sort of thing so much. I even have a ready-made deal that I can talk to him about that he'll actually believe. I'd like to have my vampirism erased too after all," Ileana admitted.

"That sounds like a good idea but you don't have anything that he would want though," Martha said.

"Don't I? I'm a friend of Rose Tyler's and someone that she would never suspect of planning something against her. That should intrigue him right there if they know as much about her as they did about the Matriarch," Ileana said.

Then she immediately looked guilty as she quickly added, "Not that I'd ever actually make such a deal. I'm just saying that it sounds like something that could be true, and I'd have plenty of reasons to do something like that. I wouldn't though. I just want to make that perfectly clear."

"Relax, Fang Gal. We know that," Donna said with a smile.

"I just felt so guilty even saying such a thing because Rose has been so good to me. If it wasn't for her, I'd have turned out exactly like Clara. I don't even want to think about what I would have done to my sister," Ileana admitted with a shudder.

"She acts like this Rose person can hear her or something," Clara's echo said with a chuckle.

The others all gave her pointed looks that made her instantly say, "Seriously?"

"We're never quite sure what Rose does or doesn't know about what's going on. Neither is anyone else. It pretty much keeps everyone on their toes," Martha admitted with a grin.

"Oh, please. Blondie's too sweet to worry about. It's not like she's going to turn us all to dust just because she hears us saying something bad about her. She only does that sort of thing to Daleks," Donna said dismissively.

"I just don't want Rose to think that I actually meant it or anything because I don't. I have to admit that I do want to be cured especially lately but I'd never go that far in order to do it," Ileana said.

"How far would you go then?" A disembodied voice said as time suddenly froze all around her.

"What?" Ileana said in shock as she realized that she was the only one in the room who could still move.

"Answer the question, Vampire. How far would you go to have a normal life once again?" The voice asked.

"I would never betray Rose or any of my other friends," Ileana said without hesitation.

"What if I promised you that would not be the case? Would you be willing to make a bargain then?" The voice asked.

"Why should I? I've heard all about your so-called bargains and how well that you keep them if this is who I think it is," Ileana said defiantly.

"You're absolutely right of course. I am the Corsair and I do represent the Brethren. I usually keep all of my deals by the way despite what you've heard. The one with the other vampire was an exception however because we didn't have time to keep our promise before the Matriarch altered things. We barely had time to save ourselves from the effects of her power. Most of the time we actually do keep our word to others once we give it to them I can assure you. We know all about your recent unhappiness, Ileana, and wish to do something about it. Rose Tyler isn't the only one who knows and sees all. The leader of the Brethren is on a much higher plane of existence than even she is so he knows far more than she ever could. He has seen your plight and how even the Bad Wolf can't give you what you truly want. He wants to help you with this," The Corsair said.

"Out of the kindness of his heart of course," Ileana said with a smirk.

"Everything has its price, Ileana. So do our services. We can make sure that you are miraculously cured of your vampirism by simply altering a single event in your near future in a way that will hurt none of your friends whatsoever. In exchange for this, we simply ask that you go through with your plan to contact me on behalf of the Wolves without telling them that I've talked with you. Do this for us and then we will cure you shortly," The Corsair said.

"So that you can ambush them or lead them into a trap? I don't think so," Ileana said.

"I have nothing of the sort planned I assure you," The Corsair said without elaborating any further.

"You're definitely up to something that's for sure," Ileana said suspiciously.

"As long as it doesn't hurt your friends, then what does it really matter? Or do you really not want to be cured as badly as your profess? If you want to be such an incredible fool as to turn down this once in a lifetime offer then by all means be my guest," The Corsair said in a mocking tone.

Suddenly time slowly restarted once again and Ileana looked behind her in surprise to see that Dorothy was there now. As she stood there with her eyes glowing, Ileana began to wonder just how much that she had overheard.

"What's with the light show, Nitro Girl?" Donna asked in confusion as everyone in the room except for Ileana looked at Dorothy in surprise now.

"Someone just stopped time in this area, and I just started it back again. That's what. I don't have a clue which scumbag was behind it but I will. They won't be able to hide from me for long especially if it's that Brethren lot. I have a score to settle with that bunch," Dorothy said in anger.

Ileana sighed in relief as she realized that Dorothy didn't know what had happened. What bothered her was that she didn't know why she was sighing exactly.

Was she actually considering the Corsair's offer?

"So you think that it was the Brethren then?" Michelle asked as she arrived at that very moment.

"Who else? I don't think that it was a coincidence that this happened just as soon as we're about to go after them do you?" Dorothy said.

"We were just talking about laying a trap for them too. They must have overheard us and were trying to stop us. Well, there goes that plan then," Donna said with a frown.

Ileana couldn't help but be glad that they were abandoning this idea since the Corsair already knew about it anyway.

"That's just wonderful. Now they must know that I told you everything that I knew too," Clara's echo said in an upset tone.

"Don't worry. I'll ask Rose to keep an eye on your family. That's not what I'm worried about. What I'm wondering is if they're that powerful, then how are we ever going to find them at all if they don't want to be found much less stop them," Martha wondered out loud.

That was actually a very good question thought Ileana. How would they ever be able to get the upper hand against someone who seemingly knew their every move as they were making it? If they were truly that powerful, then there would be nothing that they couldn't do she realized.

Or undo.

"They must be worried about us for some reason or they wouldn't have tried that little trick. Maybe we're not exactly as powerless as it looks," Donna suggested as she started to gently stroke Lauren's head while she tried yet again to get her to go to sleep.

She was now extremely worried that the baby would be scared by all of this.

Lauren only smiled at her in response as if to say that none of this was bothering her at all however. At least that's what Donna hoped she was thinking anyway. Either that or that she didn't understand a thing. That would be even better.

If only she would actually start speaking to her. At least then she might actually be able to understand her since thanks to the Doctor's memories she now knew how to speak Baby. If only she had learned how to use her telepathy better, then she could try to read her mind.

There's no need, Mum. I can read yours just fine. It's coming through loud and clear. Believe me. A voice said in Donna's head.

"What? Is that . . . Is that you?" Donna asked in disbelief as she stared down at the baby in shock.

Yep. Hello, Mum. I'm fine by the way. I'm not scared in the slightest. You really do worry too much, you know? You really need to learn how to calm down more. Lauren replied as she looked up at her and smiled.

"Oh, that's just great. She's not even a day old and she's already telling me what to do," Donna said in an irritated voice.

"I can't believe it. Donna's actually talking to the baby. I thought only Rose and the Doctor could do that," Martha said with a chuckle.

"It doesn't sound like talking to me. It sounds more like arguing," Calliope said with a giggle.

"That sounds just like Donna alright. She's already arguing with Lauren from Day One," Emmy said as she rolled her eyes.

I'm not telling you what to do. I'm just telling you to take it easy, okay? Everything's fine. Lauren replied to her mother with the mental equivalent of a sigh as both of them completely ignored the others.

Donna was about to tell her to stop it with the attitude when she suddenly realized that she was starting to act exactly like her mother and stopped herself. She also realized something else at the same time.

"Wait a minute. You're not stuttering," Donna said with a smile.

Why should I be? Lauren replied in confusion.

"No reason. I just thought that you might take after your dad is all," Donna said in concern because she knew that the future Lauren did indeed stutter.

He does? Well, that doesn't mean that I will. That's silly. It's not like it's inherited or anything. I'd love to see Dad by the way. Where is he? Lauren asked even as Donna marveled at how intelligent that she already was.

"He'll be along soon. He said that he was coming to pick you up. I can't very well take you along with me when I go after the Brethren, can I?" Donna said in a nervous and distracted tone as she wondered why the baby wouldn't stutter at first and then develop one later.

Maybe it was nothing. She could have even started doing it by subconsciously taking after her father for all that she knew.

Is something wrong, Mum? Lauren asked in a worried tone.

"No, everything's just fine. You don't need to worry about a thing, sweetie," Donna said with a forced smile.

Okay. Lauren replied in an unconvinced tone.

"So what do we do next if we can't lure them into a trap then? Any suggestions?" Michelle asked.

Suddenly time stopped yet again and once more Ileana was the only one not affected by it. She inwardly cringed as she realized what was about to come.

"We should have anticipated that even the child of the Bad Wolf would have the power to stop us from speaking to you, Ileana. That was an error on our part. It's one that we will not repeat a second time. Now she is under our control as well and we are busily monitoring the area for any other Vortex users who may or may not interfere. Now if we could just pick up where we were before when we were so rudely interrupted. What is your answer to our offer, Ileana? Will you help us in exchange for your restored humanity or not? Are you in or out?" The disembodied voice of the Corsair asked.

As Ileana thought about how incredibly powerful that they were, she realized that she had no other choice. She would be a fool not to take this opportunity as it presented itself to her.

"I'll do it . . . but only if it won't hurt any of my friends," Ileana stressed.

"Good. Very good," The Corsair said in a pleased tone just as time started back once more.

Ileana couldn't help but feel guilty as she realized that the others had never even known what had happened. Had she done the right thing?

Next: Is Ileana really going to make a deal with the Brethren? What will happen if she does? Why is the Corsair so interested in Ileana anyway and what are his plans for the Wolves? We'll find out next time as the Corsair finally crosses paths with the Wolves in person for the first time.