Child of Earth
By Lumendea
Chapter Twenty: Dalek: Confrontation
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.
AN: Thank you so much for the wonderful comments! Many of you made me smile and I was truly touched by your comments on my style and ability. This rewrite has been wonderful to write and I have deeply enjoyed it.
Remember that if you enjoy my stuff I would deeply appreciate you checking out my original fiction: The Iron Soul Series by J.M. Briggs.
…
"Does the Dalek have any weaknesses?" Colonel Roberts pressed as the Doctor kept staring at the screen. "Doctor! What can we do! Salt Lake City isn't far from here!"
The voice was enough to pull him back to the present. Rose wasn't dead yet, the Dalek wasn't free on the surface yet and he was dead yet. Too many yets, but he could work with it. He had to work with it. Rose was still alive and he wasn't willing to surrender to being anyone's guardian angel just yet.
"Not to any human weapons," the Doctor replied.
"Do you have anything in the TARDIS that can help?" Peterson questioned.
"Not anymore," the Doctor answered with a flash of anger. He shouldn't have disposed of all the weapons that his TARDIS had been fitted with. She'd never been a War TARDIS, but his rank in the war-
"Sirs," the dark haired woman at the computer called. "According to the records a new shipment of artefacts came in late yesterday," she offered uneasily. "It says there are a couple of suspected weapons. They are in the processing rooms. There may be something there we can use."
"Here's the route," another one of the soldiers offered, still keeping his distance from the Doctor. "You'd have to go down the stairs."
"The Dalek will be here in no time," the Doctor huffed even as he traced the layout plans.
"We'll try to slow it down," Colonel Peterson informed him sternly. The Doctor looked up at the man with a hint of both respect and pity. He knew their weapons were useless. "Just stop that thing before it gets to the surface." Peterson glanced at Roberts who nodded and tugged at his radio.
"All personal into the bunker at once, clear the surface," Roberts ordered.
The Doctor watched the men leave the room and as the soldiers began rushing down the stairs after them. His eyes dropped to the layout as he calculated the most likely point that the Dalek would intercept with them. It wouldn't be long. He didn't have much time.
…
Thankfully Daleks didn't set speed records was all Rose could think as she walked along beside the Dalek at a sedate pace. Still, she couldn't help the growing unease churning in her stomach. Things had taken an odd turn and the Dalek's words about fear were ringing in her head. She didn't have her sword at the ready and yet it was no longer firing. The Doctor had opened the door already so why was she still alive.
Nibbling on her lower lip, Rose considered the Dalek out of the corner of her eye. It wasn't matching up with the stories, but she knew better than to dismiss those so what was happening here. Was the Dalek being affected by the burden of knowing it was the only one left or was this something else?
The hallway opened into a large almost hanger-like space and Rose's eyes widened in horror as she saw row after row of men in UNIT, Section 13 and even the black dressed guards of Van Statten's lined up with their weapons at the ready. Weapons that Rose knew were absolutely useless. The only good thing was that the Doctor was nowhere in sight which as even Colonel Peterson and Colonel Roberts up on a catwalk above pointed weapons at the Dalek was not reassuring.
"Don't," Rose shouted as she moved ahead of the Dalek before she could think about it. "Stand down."
"Tyler, get out of the way," Peterson shouted down to her.
"You will be Exterminated," the Dalek announced to the assembled forces, but it did not fire on Rose to get her out of the way.
"Why?" Rose demanded, spinning on her heel to face the Dalek, coming face to face once again with its eyestalk. "They can't hurt you. Not with those weapons so why kill them?"
"I am a Dalek. They must be Exterminated."
"Why?" Rose asked softly before swallowing and repeating in a louder voice, "Why?"
The Dalek's eyestalk shifted slightly, narrowing in on her face, but Rose didn't flinch back. She kept herself squarely between the Dalek and the troops. It hadn't killed her yet and maybe it would keep wanting her alive a bit longer.
"My function is to kill," the Dalek replied in that horrible voice.
"Why?" Rose pressed, motioning behind her back for the troops to remain calm. "Why?"
"Cease asking that question," the Dalek demanded and Rose thought she heard an undertone of frustration in the Dalek's voice. It was the same tone as its rant about fear earlier. "Cease questioning!"
"No," Rose breathed as confidence began to bloom in her chest. Something was happening, she had no idea what, but something was different. "I'm human," she told the Dalek passionately. "I'm never going to stop asking that question."
"It is the Dalek way," the Dalek replied, its gun twitching towards one of the nearest soldiers, but on instinct, Rose shifted to stay in front of it.
"Why?" she pressed again, reaching towards the Dalek and tentatively touching the small weapon array. The Dalek's eyestalk was focused on Rose as she gently placed her hand over it, almost like she was putting her hand on a person's. "Colonel Peterson Colonel Roberts," she called out without moving her eyes off the Dalek's eyestalk. "Fall back. Do not attack the Dalek, return to the surface and secure the area."
'Tyler I can't do that," Colonel Peterson announced clearly.
"Oh, so you and your men are going to attack the Dalek here with Earth weapons that can't harm it?" Rose asked harshly, still not turning around, but feeling stronger as the Dalek quietly watched her. "It isn't attacking you or me, but I can't promise anything if you attack it."
"Tyler-" Peterson protected and the Dalek made a sharp movement towards the voice.
Rose moved again, keeping herself between the Dalek and the assembled troops. "Do it!" She called, feeling thankful when her voice didn't waver. "Trust me and just go. Secure the area around the bunker. You can't do anything here and now."
"I must exterminate them!" The Dalek insisted, but Rose shook her head.
"No, you don't. You don't have to do this anymore," Rose insisted even she heard people begin to move towards the door. Breathing a sigh of relief, Rose reached out her right hand and placed it on the side of the Dalek's head. She was aware that she wouldn't be able to protect herself from the laser but shoved the thought aside. "It's okay," she offered gently as if she was speaking with a child. "It's okay. You don't have to kill anyone. What do you want?"
"I want…" the Dalek trailed off and Rose shifted her hand, brushing her thumb over the hot metallic surface. "I want freedom."
….
They didn't move until the last of the footfalls had faded away. The Dalek was quiet and Rose kept her hand gently resting against the Dalek's shell. Thankfully this time it didn't burn and she thought back to what the Dalek had said about regenerating herself. That must be it, she realised with a barely contained gasp. The Dalek had used her time traveller DNA, but now it had her DNA and all the humanness that went with it.
"Not the lift," Rose told the Dalek. "Too many people around it. The stairs can take us to the upper levels."
"As you command," the Dalek replied calmly, following her towards the side corridor that connected to the stairs.
Offering it a weak smile, Rose glanced back towards the lift. She desperately hoped that the Colonels would listen to her and recognise that setting up lines of men to die wasn't a good idea. Then again, she didn't even understand what was happening. She knew what she hoped for, but none of the stories she'd been told had prepared her for this. As she reached the stairs, Rose turned and watched the Dalek begin to rise off the ground. Inhaling deeply, Rose started to climb the stairs as she made a point to ignore the signs marking what level they were on. She really didn't want to know how much further she needed to go.
…
The Doctor's hands found the control points easily on the large Mortivic firearm. The weight was heavy even for his large frame, but it could get through the Dalek's shield. His hands were shaking a little even as he forced a grin.
"Oh, yes. Lock and load."
The weapon hummed in his hands and he ignored the two soldiers at the door. They were listening to their radios, but he ignored them. Instead, he rushed out of the door, calling after him. "You two get out! Stay away from the Dalek!"
"But sir!" one of them called after him. "Doctor there's something-"
He didn't stop to listen. The Dalek was on its way out and he had to stop it.
…
They were on the upper floor now, but away from the main entrance. This was a series of storage and staging rooms for incoming supplies. There were piles of boxes everywhere and it made Rose very nervous as they left the stairwell behind. The sudden rush of footfalls ahead of them made Rose tense up in worry. She'd thought that they'd gotten past the UNIT forces and Van Statten's men, but there were more people up ahead. Had one of the Colonels changed their minds?
Rose frowned, they weren't near the entrance and fear tinged at the back of her mind. Had someone snuck in while UNIT forces were coming inside? There was certainly a lot of places to hide in the bunker. No sooner than she thought that than a small group of people in all black swept out from behind the boxes and out from the crannies, all of them training their weapons on her. She saw no emblems on the uniforms but had a strong sinking feeling that she knew who they were.
"It's Tyler," one of the men announced as he stepped a bit closer to her. "Execute sir?"
"She'd be more useful as a hostage," another man responded gruffly. "Our priority is to recover OMEGA-5."
"But our orders are to execute on sight," another argued and Rose took a hesitant step back.
"Execute?" the Dalek repeated the fire back in its voice. "Execute?"
"What is that?" one of the men questioned, shifting his weapon towards the Dalek. "Isn't that the alien Van Statten just bought? Thought it couldn't move or speak."
"Easy," Rose called out bringing her hands up in a gesture of surrender as she looked nervously towards the Dalek. "Just calm down."
"Follow priority orders," another one of the masked men huffed, shifting his weapon at Rose. "Tyler is a threat, execute."
Rose gasped in alarm and the sounds of dozens of small explosions echoed in the concrete corridor. Her body braced itself despite the absurdity of that only for nothing to hit her. Opening the eyes she hadn't realised she'd closed Rose found the Dalek hovering in front of her with its force field on. Crushed and useless bullets were scattered all around.
"Exterminate!" The Dalek called frantically before Rose could try to calm it. "You shall not harm Rose Tyler! Exterminate!"
Rapid Dalek blasts allowed Rose to see flashes of the seven skeletons before their bodies fell dead to the floor. Relief, disgust and anger flashed through Rose and fought for dominance. The Dalek landed back on the floor and spun to face her. As she gazed into the eyestalk all Rose could think was that this was not how she'd imagined the day going.
"You are unharmed?" the Dalek asked, shocking Rose further.
"Yeah," she answered weakly with a nod.
"We are near the surface." The Dalek spun back and rolled forward past the fallen bodies.
Rose paused to look down at them for a moment. There were no insignias, but based on what they had said she was certain they were Eclipse. Van Statten had probably called some of them after his other contacts couldn't stop the combined clout of UNIT and Section 13. They'd been sent to retrieve something… OMEGA-5. The Dalek stopped at the door and looked back towards her, waiting for her. Rose stepped around the bodies and followed the Dalek into the next room, noting that a hole had blasted in the roof.
It explained how they got in and the Dalek quickly rolled over towards the hole with its weapon raised. Rose didn't even flinch as the Dalek blasted at the ceiling again to expand the hole. Rubble and dirt poured down in front of them and Rose wondered just where in the honeycomb of tunnels they were. Sunlight spilt down on them, straight onto the Dalek's upraised eyepiece.
"Here you are," Rose sighed as she looked over to the Dalek. "Can you feel the sunlight?"
"How does it feel?" the Dalek questioned confirming Rose's fears about its armour. Pain stimulus to make it fight harder, but nothing else.
"Warm," Rose offered, trying to explain how the beam of sunlight felt on her skin. "Energising and… happy."
Then with a soft hiss, the middle section of the Dalek's armour began to open. Rose gaped at it, she'd heard that the Dalek's were really small aliens inside what basically were tanks, but this was unexpected. The dome shifted open and revealed a small mutant with a dozen tendrils within. One of its tendril's reached out of the armour and with a soft smile, Rose gently raised her hand to touch it. Probably the first physical contact this interior creature had ever had, her mind provided and a wave of sadness and anger hit her.
"You are sad."
"A bit," Rose agreed. "You didn't know how sunlight felt."
"I have killed."
"Doesn't mean I can't feel compassion for you," Rose answered honestly, surprised at the tears trying to sting her eyes.
This was messy. This was a Dalek. An engine of hate and war. A nightmare that haunted so many of her and the Doctor's friends, the species that had cost the man she loved his planet and yet here she was feeling so much pity her chest hurt.
"It is… weakness," the Dalek responded, sounding in pain.
"No it isn't," Rose replied softly. "Never mistake compassion for weakness. It is what makes the weak strong."
"Irrational."
"A bit yeah," Rose agreed with a weak smile. "But when was the universe ever rational?"
"Get out of the way," the familiar voice of the Doctor suddenly ordered them. "Rose, get out of the way now!"
Rose spun around only to gap in alarm as she found the Doctor holding a huge black weapon of some kind and pointing it right at her and the Dalek. There was an enraged spark in his eye and his gaze swept over the bodies around them.
"No," Rose gasped shaking her head. "I won't let you do this."
"That thing will destroy Earth! Kill billions of people!" the Doctor insisted. "It can do it, Rose, you know that!"
Swallowing, Rose raised her chin and shifted so she was squarely in front of the Dalek and met the Doctor's eyes. "It's not the one pointing the gun at me."
"I've got to do this," the Doctor insisted and Rose wasn't sure who he was really talking to as his face twisted with barely repressed rage and pain. "I've got to end it. The Daleks destroyed my home, my people!" He was almost shouting at her as the weapon shook slightly. "I've got nothing left."
"Doctor," Rose called softly. "You've got me." His eyes finally shifted to her and Rose allowed herself to take a breath before slowly shifting to the side. "Look at it, Doctor. Really look at it. What do you see?"
She allowed the Doctor to see the opening casing with a Dalek bathing in the warm sunlight. Rose looked back at him and saw his facial features relaxing into confusion as the rage began to recede. Her heart rate normalised a little, but she kept her eyes on him.
"What's it doing?" the Doctor questioned in near shock.
"Feeling the sunlight," Rose answered gently. "It hasn't before." Disbelief crossed his face and Rose pressed on. "The UNIT soldiers, Section 13 and even Van Statten's guards are all alive," Rose insisted quickly, debating if she should move towards the Doctor. "You must have followed us up the stairs and missed them, but I asked the Dalek to spare them and it did." She gestured to the scattered bodies even as she felt ill. "This lot… they're Eclipse I think. They ambushed us and tried to kill me. The Dalek protected me from them, Doctor."
"That's not possible," the Doctor grumbled, eyeing the Dalek in a blend of confusion and anger.
"Why am I still alive then?" Rose pressed as tears began to gather in her eyes. "The Dalek is changing Doctor. It's feeling now. What about you, Doctor?" she asked him around a painful lump in her throat. "What are you changing into?"
His grip loosened on the firearm and it dropped to his side. Rose almost started to cry at the blend of horror, shock and grief that took over his face. Her heart hurt and she could only fathom how he felt. Tears began to gather in her eyes.
"I couldn't-" the Doctor started to say before trailing off. "I wasn't-" He stopped again and turned his gaze to her, begging her with his eyes to understand. "Oh, Rose. They're all dead."
"Why do we survive?" the Dalek asked, drawing Rose's attention back to it.
"I don't know," the Doctor answered simply, the fight and rage gone from his voice.
"I am the last of the Daleks," the Dalek announced weakly, sounding in pain.
"You're not even that," the Doctor replied. "Rose did more than regenerate you. You've absorbed her DNA. You're mutating."
"Into what?"
"Something new," the Doctor answered. After a long paused he added, "I'm sorry."
"Isn't that better?" Rose heard herself ask, unable to hear the defeat in both their voices.
"Not for a Dalek," the Doctor told her even as his eyes remained fixed on the Dalek.
"I can feel so many ideas. So much darkness. Rose, give me orders. Order me to die," the Dalek all but begged as Rose turned back to it.
"But…." Rose trailed off and licked her lips as she reached out and touched the Dalek's tiny mutated arm. "Can't you try?" she pleaded even as she felt the Doctor's gaze on her back.
"I cannot be like you," the Dalek replied softly. "Order my destruction!" the Dalek demanded before softly adding, "Please."
"Okay," Rose whispered with a flinch. "Dalek, destroy yourself."
"Are you frightened, Rose Tyler?"
"Yes," Rose admitted. "I am."
"So am I," the Dalek agreed. "Exterminate."
Its eye closed and the casing began to reseal. Rose carefully backed away, avoiding the bodies and rushing over to the Doctor's side. He was completely still and watching the Dalek with a slack jaw as it began to rise into the air. The orbs on its lower armour suddenly released from the shell and formed a sphere around it. There was a flash of light and static as the Dalek created a field around itself. Then it exploded, filling the sphere with fire and light before every trace of it vanished.
"Doctor?" Rose called softly, hesitantly as she touched his arm. "You okay?"
Then he turned his head sharply to look at her with wide, disbelieving eyes. The gun dropped to the ground with a clatter and he swept her up in a bone crushing hug. Closing her eyes tightly in relief, Rose wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held onto him for dear life. If she started to cry and his hands shook, neither of them pointed it out. They stayed like that until UNIT forces came rushing into the room and the Doctor slowly released her.
…
Standing next to the TARDIS, it was all Rose could do not to collapse against the beloved blue box. The Doctor had stayed next to her but had been silent all throughout her explanation of the Dalek's suicide. If the Colonels knew it was a highly edited version, they said nothing on the matter and Rose was grateful. Her news about the intruders was met with anger and embarrassment, but also curiosity about OMEGA-5. Sadly Van Statten was dead and couldn't answer any questions about it or his connection to Eclipse. Rose knew that she'd have to deal with that soon, but today she had nothing left.
"I'm sorry for not telling you about the Dalek," Rose told the Doctor softly, drawing his blue eyes back to her. "I was trying to protect you, but… I'm sorry Doctor."
"I understand why you did," the Doctor replied thickly. "It's… not a good subject for me." He paused and Rose could almost hear the wheels turning. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."
"I forgive you," Rose assured him quickly. "Do you forgive me?"
The Doctor met her eyes and Rose almost gasped. There was a very familiar shine in them, but also a hint of pained resignation. "I… I think that I'll always forgive you," the Doctor admitted and Rose barely held back tears or a wide grin. "You," the Doctor swallowed audibly. "You pitied it?"
"Yeah," Rose admitted as she leaned against the TARDIS, giving into her exhaustion. "I did." As his blue eyes widened, Rose managed a weak shrug. "I'm weird."
He almost smiled and Rose shifted over to take his right hand. His left hand came up and touched the TARDIS gently. There was an empty expression on his face that Rose decided she hated; it was worse than him in pain or angry. It frightened her.
"A little piece of home," the Doctor intoned. "Better than nothing."
"But it's over now," Rose told him gently, trying to find the right words. Somehow it had been easier to comfort a Dalek then it was him at this moment.
"Yeah, I'm the only one left. I win," the Doctor half cheered darkly. "How about that?"
"The Dalek survived. Maybe some of your people did too," Rose offered weakly.
"I'd know. In here," the Doctor told her as he tapped his temple. Rose inwardly flinched, she'd known he was telepathic, but now it took on a whole new weight. No wonder he'd been so happy and overwhelmed when Astra had established telepathic communication with him. "Feels like there's no one."
"There's me," Rose told him, tightening her grip on his hand. "You've got me, Doctor," Rose promised him with wide certain eyes.
He turned to look at her, a soft glow in his eyes. Something familiar to Rose from her other Doctors, but not this one. Had he been a later incarnation she knew he would have pulled her close and kissed her, but instead, he just swallowed and looked at her uneasily. She wanted to kiss him, lean up and press their lips together to reassure him, but he was already ready to run. He wasn't ready for them yet and while that hurt, Rose found herself accepting it.
"Tell you what," Rose announced as she struggled to hold back a rush of sorrow and tears. "Enough of school. Let's hit London for my stuff and see what we can find."
"What about university?" the Doctor questioned with a new strange expression appearing on his face.
"You're more important," Rose answered honestly.
He stared at her again, his mouth a tiny bit ajar. Rose wasn't certain how long they stood like that, just looking at each other, but suddenly someone behind her cleared their throat.
"I'm sorry Miss Tyler… uh Agent Thorn," Colonel Roberts called. "Geneva on the phone for you."
"Uh just give me a second," Rose told the Doctor with a dramatic eye roll. "We put everyone on alert. I guess they need to confirm… everything."
"Yeah," the Doctor agreed softly.
She leaned up to kiss his cheek quickly, giving him a large if a bit forced smile before she turned towards Colonel Roberts. He nodded towards the doorway and Rose followed him out into the hallway. There was a large radio unit set up and Rose chuckled softly as she grabbed the headset and greeted Geneva.
Rose froze as she heard the familiar grinding sound of the TARDIS dematerializing. Her eyes closed and she inhaled deeply to control the wave of hurt that flashed through her. Closing her eyes, she ignored the phone for a moment and just listened as the last echoes of the TARDIS vanished.
"Yes I'm still here," Rose said a moment later into the phone. "No, I like the plan to disintegrate the artefacts. Given that Eclipse was interested in something here that's the safest idea." She paused and then sighed, "No I don't think I need to be here for that. Between Doctor Matthews and UNIT forces, it will get done. How soon can you get me on the plane back to London? I'm done with Utah."
….Coming Soon….
A blue public police phone box stood in the corner of the room and Rose's eyes were instantly drawn to it. She began to smile before the door on the far side of the room opened and a UNIT Captain strolled in with a younger looking man. He was tall, just about six feet with handsome features and slightly messed short brown hair. He was dressed in dark blue jeans, a button down shirt with folded up sleeves and a waistcoat. When he spotted her, his brown eyes warmed and he smiled.
"Ah Miss Tyler," the UNIT Captain greeted her with a salute. "As you can see the Doctor has joined us."
But the man that was looking at her was not the Doctor. Rose stared into his eyes, but they were all wrong. Far too young and lacking the weight of age that always clouded his gaze. This man was not the Doctor.