Child of Earth
By Lumendea
Chapter Sixteen: Reason to Celebrate: Glimpses
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.
….
Guilt filled Rose as the screams faded away. In her mind's eye she could see the Nortivil draining those Torchwood agents of their living energy and dropping them to a floor as husks. It made her mad, made her hurt and she wished that she'd gotten their names. Hartman would know, she was a people person, and Rose would be offering Torchwood a thank you. But she forced herself to focus on what needed to happen. They'd bought some time for her and the others, she needed to use it.
The rate that the glow of London was fading in the distance made Rose nervous. Above their heads, the glow of the moon was almost overwhelming and stars were appearing. In the distance, she could hear shouting and silently wished that everyone would just go home and light some candles. She knew there was a hospital not too far away and yet there was no glow in that direction. This thing didn't need to grab people to kill them and she found her feet moving faster.
As they rushed down the street towards Rory's jewellery store, Rose could see more lights fading in the distance. She wondered what the story for this one was going to be. After all, she suspected at the all the power lines and power plants were working just as they were supposed to. The only problem was a living shadow that was draining the energy.
"Here it is," Rory breathed, pointing his torch at the door of a small, but very nice looking jewellery store.
Looking up, Rose spotted the cameras and wasn't sure if they had an internal power supply. Just to be on the safe side, she used the sonic pen to switch them off and unlocked the door. Nothing happened when she eased the door open and a glance at a small security box showed that it was completely dead. Still, Rose crossed over to it quickly and used the sonic pen to switch off any backup systems that might be hooked into it. The store was larger than the outside suggested with several large cases of jewellery lining the walls and one large elegant counter in the middle that dominated the space.
"Okay," Rose declared as they looked around the store. "We need some sort of tank, water, tungsten and some…." she trailed off and grimaced. "Electricity."
"Uh…" Sharon trailed off as she looked around at the darkness. "Would batteries work?"
"If you can find some," Rose answered quickly. "They should do the trick. Electroplating really doesn't need a huge current." She looked around and nibbled at her bottom lip, "But we also need vinegar and some table salt and…." Rose paused, "Uh milk should work."
"Corner store a few shops back," Sharon told Shareen. "Come on."
"I can't believe we've become looters," Shareen sighed.
"Well be careful about real looters," Rory told them both as they backtracked towards the door. "With the power outage going on it won't take long for people to start trying their luck." Rose pulled out her phone and tossed it to Shareen. "Call Spock, make sure that he's contacted UNIT. If we can't pull this off then they need to be ready."
"Right," Shareen agreed before she and Sharon darted outside again.
"Found this," Rory said as he set a small glass case on the ground behind the counter. It was the sort used for smaller displays, but plenty large enough. "Think it will work?"
"Yeah," Rose answered as her eyes scanned the cases nervously, hoping that this place had what they needed. "We need some cables too. I should have told the girls that. And something to hang them on," Rose added, feeling rather frantic.
"Got it," Rory agreed with a nod before handing his torch to Rose and pulling out his phone. The light on it worked and he quickly picked up the glass tank and headed towards the back.
Taking a deep breath, Rose opened the first of the cases and used the light of the torch to inspect the jewellery. Thankfully the different cases were marked on the inside of the counter with small little notes to help the staff. There weren't many, but in the right most case Rose found what she was looking for: a small display of heavy tungsten rings.
She plucked out four of the rings just to be on the safe side and moved back towards the tank as Amelia and Rory returned from the back each of them carrying supplied.
"Found some metal wires in the back," Amelia announced as she moved over to the overturned case that Rory was setting a thin metal bar over. Together the pair bent some of the wires into a hook to hold the rings.
"We got everything you said," Shareen announced as she and Sharon stumbled back into the shop and locked the door behind them. "An alarm managed to go off for about two seconds before it wound down in this really weird sound." She shivered and handed Rose's phone back over. "Thankfully it hasn't drained the phones yet. Spock had already alerted UNIT and they're on their way."
"They know about the tungsten?"
"Yeah, they're working on it too," Shareen offered around a thick swallow.
"Okay," Rose muttered softly, shifting nervously as she knelt down. She poured the jug of milk into the tank followed by the vinegar and some of the salt. "Here's the solution, we've got power and the tungsten."
"What are you planning to use?" Sharon asked as she eyed the tank. "As the weapon I mean?"
Moving her wrist, Rose called her sword and watched as Sharon grimaced.
"Are you sure that will work?" Rory asked with hesitation. "I mean tungsten is one of the hardest metals in the world. Not to mention you have to hold the sword…"
"No," Rose admitted with a frown. "But this isn't actually gold and is a lot stronger than anything else I've encountered so the tungsten should be able to at least temporary electroplate it."
"I don't know," Sharon breathed as her eyes danced between the sword and the tank.
"This is what I've got," Rose sighed. "I wasn't exactly prepared for this." She shook her head. "Come on, we haven't got much time."
For an art and music history student Amelia helped her hook up the batteries without even a moment of hesitation. Rose eyed the solution doubtfully, eying the dark ring hooked up to the first of the batteries. For a moment she regretted her own lack of knowledge, wondering if there hadn't been an easier way to do this.
"I hope this works," Shareen breathed as she looked out the window. "I mean those Torchwood agents…" she trailed off and Rose nodded in understanding.
She'd contact Hartman when this was all over and commend them for buying time. As much as she disliked Torchwood they'd earned that. Shifting off her knees, Rose dipped the end of the sword several inches into the tank and tossed the sonic pen to Amelia. Grinning, Amelia adjusted the setting on the sonic pen and lowered the tip just above the water. The soft familiar hum of the pen filled the jewellery store, proving to be both comforting and distressingly loud.
Rory took back his torch and shined it on the small tank as the water vibrated thanks to the sonic pen. The ring was shimmering oddly and Rose couldn't help but lean forward to watch it. Amelia carefully hooked up the second wire to the blade of the sword and Rose held her breath. She could feel something happening, there was an odd tingle up her arm and she desperately hoped that the sword could understand her enough to help this work. Her holding the sword was far from ideal, but she couldn't' think of any alternative right now.
Everyone was silent as the sonic pen's hum continued to fill the shop. Outside Rose could hear the noise level rising and grimaced. If looters were out then they were in a horrible place. The solution was fizzing softly with small bubbles appearing in a steady stream. Rory shifted his torch towards Rose's sword and she gasped at the sight of a faint dark layer beginning to form on the blade.
"It's working," Sharon breathed. "Let's just hope it doesn't break your sword."
Amelia and Rory exchanged a look but said nothing and Rose didn't ask. A strange long snarl was all the warning they had before the Nortivil arrived. Bits of shadow crept in beneath the doorway and the fancy windows rattled. Rose braced herself for a secondary alarm to sound, but the power outage seemed to have drained even the backup systems. The temperature in the store dropped and Rose looked down at the tank. There was still only a very faint layer on the blade of her sword, but they were out of time.
Rose exhaled and pulled her sword from the water, shaking off the electrical wire wrapped around it. She ignored the slight jolt up her arm and brought the sword up. Outside there were sudden screams and even in the darkness, she could see people running away. Moving towards the doorway, Rose readied herself to charge outside
But then the main window shattered, the glass cracking out all around the central point. As the glass fell inwards a shadow seeped into the building and Rose took a step back. Rose's breath danced on the air as the shadow rose up and retook the frightening human shape.
Slashing out, Rose gasped as the Nortivil dodged her strike and hissed. There was a strange breathing sound and she realised with a hint of alarm that it was sniffing at the air. Before she could move it lashed forward and grabbed her. A painful rush of cold spun up Rose's left arm. She couldn't move and her lungs constricted due to the sudden rush of cold. A laugh escaped the Nortivil and fear burst through Rose as she tried to move. On reflex, her fingers tightened around her sword, but she couldn't seem to bring her arm up to attack.
Someone grabbed her right arm and shoved it forward. There was a flash of gold and silver in the air and the Nortivil made a cry of alarm. It released Rose and she stumbled forward towards it, unable to control her fall. The blade sliced into its flesh and there was a flash of low light as the tungsten flecks on the tip of the sword reacted with something. Rose's sword suddenly warmed up and there was an odd burning smell as the Nortivil shrieked. Reeling back, the Nortivil's body began to shimmer and shake. Rose's eyes widened as the room suddenly heated up, beyond its normal temperature and she smelled something ionising. Like a building thunderstorm!
"Run!" Rose gasped as the dark mass pulsed and sparked.
She almost fell into Sharon, realising that her friend must have been the one to help her use the sword. Sharon tossed Rose's arm around her shoulder as her sword returned to its bracelet form. Rose felt tiny flecks falling past her hand and as Shareen grabbed her other arm looked down to see fragments of tungsten falling to the floor. Everyone rushed to the front door which Amelia unlocked with a quick flick of the sonic pen and poured out into the street.
Rose could see the energy building on the air, it smelled like the calm just before lightning struck. Thankfully the others understood too and kept moving further away from the shop. Behind them the windows of the store exploded outwards in a brilliant flash of light. Lightning lashed out through the windows and a rush of heat washed out into the street catching Rose by surprise.
"Uh good call on the running," Shareen offered with a weak laugh.
"How are you feeling?" Sharon demanded as she shifted Rose back against a wall.
Rory joined her in less than a second, shining her torch into Rose's eyes. She blinked and tried to turn her face away as she breathed in and out slowly.
"I'm okay," she insisted with a soft chuckle. "Tired, but okay."
"You should see a doctor and I mean an actual doctor," Rory told her firmly. "That thing had you for several seconds, Rose."
Her phone suddenly began ringing as the fire began to grow in intensity. People were rushing out of the building down the fire escape from the upper flats and Rose grimaced in sympathy. Looking around the street she watched the lights begin to flicker on and winced as she took in the messy street. Apparently, some looting had been in progress.
"Hello?" she greeted exhausted as she brought the phone up to her ear.
"Tyler?" Benton's voice greeted with a grateful sigh. "Frost is only a block away, but reports of an explosion are coming in from the area. Are you alright?"
"Yeah, the Nortivil is dead," Rose announced. "Apparently bad things happen when something converting energy is killed."
"And you're alright?" Benton asked again.
"Yeah," Rose sighed, as she heard a large number of vehicles and turned to see the large UNIT SUVs and two trucks pulling into the area. "I'm alright."
In the corner of her eye, Rose saw Amelia and Rory duck into an alley away from UNIT. She paused but realised quickly their reason for concern. Chuckling softly, she caught Sharon and Shareen's eyes and shook her head to give them a little warning. Both of them nodded and Rose hoped they'd gotten the message. As Benton got off the line, Rose sighed and ended the call, pulling her coat tighter around herself.
Rose turned her attention back to the vehicles as they came to a stop. UNIT soldiers poured out to secure the area and others with firefighting equipment went to the storefront. Thankfully Rose could see that the sprinkler system seemed to be working at least. Maybe the damage wouldn't be too bad. A woman moved towards them and Rose turned her attention to her, relaxing when she realised that it was Elizabeth Frost.
"Tyler," Colonel Frost greeted in a stern professional voice. "Are you alright?"
"I will be," Rose promised as she eyed the Colonel's insignias. "Congratulations on the promotion," she told Frost. "I haven't seen you for a while."
Frost gave her a softer look and Rose knew that the Colonel didn't buy her flippancy for a moment. She glanced over towards Rose's friends and then glanced at Rose, her eyes lingering on Rose's short hem and the shoes. Rose huffed as the Colonel chuckled a little.
"She needs a doctor," Sharon informed Frost calmly. "Full medical check."
"Of course," Frost agreed with a nod. "Medical transport is right over here," Frost announced as she gestured towards another truck that was pulling up.
Sharon gripped her arm tightly and half dragged her towards the medical unit. Rose looked over her shoulder to find Shareen still speaking with Frost who was nodding quickly.
…..
"Well you seem to be alright," the medical officer that Rose had never met before told her nervously. It was a young Indian man who seemed far too worried when he'd check her vitals. Rose's 'someone warned him about the Doctor' internal alarm was going off. "But if you feel weak at all-"
"I'll report it immediately," Rose promised, tugging at the hem of her dress as another one of the soldiers walked past her and did a double take. "Can I go?"
"Uh yes, I suppose," Doctor Verma answered and Rose jumped off the table and rushed down the stairs out to the street.
She looked around quickly as she moved away from the vehicle. The familiar glow of London was back and above her head, many of the stars had vanished in the light, but she felt only relief. Pushing a strand of blonde hair behind her ear Rose wondered how she was going to remember this one. It had started off as a night out with friends, turned into a rescue mission and then a fight for survival. No grand plot, no major enemies… just a nasty alien with his eyes on a snack no matter who or what it hurt.
The fire had been put out and people were milling around curiously despite the late hour. Police were down the street, checking on the shops and a strange calm had set in over the area. Catching sight of Sharon and Shareen, Rose moved towards them where they were waiting near the end of the UNIT barricaded zone. Both of them look tired but were smiling and talking to a couple of the UNIT soldiers.
Rose stood there watching her best mates talk with the UNIT blokes and tried to smile. Her gut was twisting painfully as she thought back to the club. Amelia and Rory hadn't recognised Sharon or Shareen, hadn't known who they were. Licking her lips, Rose struggled to control her breathing and the tears prickling at her eyes as that fact really sank in. The horror of the Nortivil faded from her mind as another fear set in.
"Rose," Amelia called softly as she stepped up next to her. "You alright?"
"I'm fine," Rose forced out and Amelia gave her a doubtful look.
"That sounded a lot like when the Doctor says he's alright," Amelia informed her.
"I'll be okay Amelia," Rose promised. "I just… realised something that I've been ignoring."
"Okay," Amelia said softly before she reached over and snagged Rose's hand. As Rose turned to look at her Amelia kissed her cheek softly with a kind smile. "Well Rory and I should go, timelines and UNIT and all that. Just wanted to wait to make sure you were okay."
"Yeah I'm fine," Rose assured with a nod. "Take care of yourself."
"I will," Amelia promised as she released Rose's hand and stepped forward to hug her tightly. "Love you," Amelia whispered to her before she released her and dashed away.
Rose watched Amelia's ginger hair in the crowd of curious bystanders for a moment as she rejoined Rory and the pair quickly moved away from the building and the fuss. Staring after them, Rose breathed in and out slowly as she tried to regain some sense of equilibrium.
"Rose," Shareen's voice called as she and Sharon came over. "Come on honey, they've got our ride."
Turning back to her friend, Rose found herself drinking in Shareen's features from her wavy brown hair, bright eyes and great cheekbones to the small dimples that appeared as she smiled. Before she thought out it, Rose moved forward and hugged her friend tightly as her body shook the tiniest bit.
"Rose?" Shareen questioned as Sharon walked over with a worried expression.
"Sorry," Rose gasped as she released Shareen and brushed a few tears that were slipping down her cheeks away. "I just- sorry."
"Rose," Shareen said softly as she reached out and caught her hand. "Over the years we've gotten a lot of clues that your lifespan is going to be lengthened, a lot."
"I know," Rose forced out, wondering just how Shareen could read her so easily.
"And that means that someday, even with time travel we aren't going to be here anymore. Not in your timeline anyway," Shareen whispered as she squeezed Rose's hand. "Amelia didn't know us. She tried to hide it, but there was no recognition in her eyes." Rose just nodded, unable to speak around the sudden lump in her throat. "And that's okay."
She turned to look at her friend's face and found Shareen looking at her with soft teary eyes. "It's okay," she repeated. "Because Sharon and I both know that you'll have the Doctor and friends like Amelia and Rory even when we and the modern companion's club are gone."
"Shareen-"
Her throat tightened as the reality of it hit Rose in the chest. She'd known for a while now that she wasn't looking at a mortal lifespan; that much had become pretty clear. She had theories as to why ranging from medical intervention to… well, whatever the Guardians were so interested in her about. To her, it had been a good thing because of what it meant for her and the Doctor and eventually their children, but all of a sudden she could see a cost. One that she'd never considered before. Not really.
She'd outlive them: Sharon, Shareen, Sarah Jane, Luke, Sky, the Chestertons and her Mum. All of them. Even with time travel and some patience eventually, she'd just run out of days. Run out of time and that realisation suddenly made it very hard to breathe.
Sharon reached out and stroked her hair gently, drawing Rose's gaze towards her. "We know that you'll be with the bloke that loves you from the bottom of both of his hearts, that you'll have two daughters who admire you and love you and other people whose lives you are going to touch," Sharon continued with a soft smile. "We know that when we're gone you will have a family that loves you. That they will look after you for us."
"And hey if I ever get phone calls from you in your future when you just need to talk to an old mate," Shareen chuckled even as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Or you show up at our flat looking older with a wedding ring," Shareen swallowed thickly, looking a bit pained. "We promise to keep quiet about it."
Leaning her head against Shareen's shoulder, Rose closed her eyes and allowed herself to soak in the love she could feel radiating from her friends. They each wrapped an arm around her and then Sharon kissed her cheek.
"So what do you say we go back to our flat, eat ice cream and have a Disney marathon?"
"That sounds brilliant," Rose agreed as she squeezed her eyes and tried not to cry. There'd be time for tears later, but not now. Not after a victory and not while she still had them.
…Coming Soon…..
"Thorn," a tense-sounding Benton said. "I'm sending you to Utah."
"Utah," Rose repeated as a cold shudder went up her spine. "Not again, why?"
"Van Statten," Benton informed her in a tired sounding voice. "A distress signal has been discovered in that bunker of his."
"A distress… he'd got a living alien?"
"Seems like," Benton grumbled. "They're hoping you can help calm the alien down. The operation is due to go in tomorrow. Thanks to the U.N. ruling against keeping aliens prisoner without authorization we can go in. We're working with Section 13 on this. Will you go?"
"Of course," Rose answered quickly as she started reaching for her bag. "Who knows what he's got locked up down there."